World Cup 90--RP Thread

[Huayramarca]

OOC: All concepts and thoughts expressed here does not represent my actual political views nor are intended to target any kind of social collective expressions.

1985 Elections: Primaries Set the Scenario for General Elections

Written by: Alberta Calatayud
19/01/1985 – Last Updated: 8:25 A.M.

The scenario is set for the April 2nd General Elections in Huayramarca, this has happened after a quite hectic day of Primaries that we had across the nation and even some other points in the Multiverse due to the support provided by mail voting and the Postal Service of Huayramarca, who performed efficiently in order to send the ballots to the Supreme Elections Council for its counting.

High turnout was reported since early hours of the morning, mostly by elder people who wanted to perform their civic duties in a not-so-hostile environment in terms of weather, this to prevent fainting due to dehydration as Huayramarca is, currently, experiencing one of the strongest heatwaves of the last decade. With some temperatures rising to 40 degrees Celsius in the Jungle and 45°C in Guayaquil. In order to prevent any kind of sufferings to the people in queues, the Huayramarcan Red Cross was set in every voting centre in order to provide first aid for those who were in need of it.

The voting process started with some accidents in certain places, such as a stampede in Tayabamba as people tried to enter by brute force while the Election Officials weren’t finished preparing the ballot stations. At least three people were injured with broken ribs due to that situation. Aside from those incidents, people remained civil during a great part of the day across the Plurinational Republic, aside from some sparse incidents that only appeared as unconfirmed through Social Media.

An environment that was heated since the first minutes was the political one, as presidential nominees were exchanging arguments through Twii.tur during the first two hours of the election, especially Ricardo Flores (Conservative) and Cristina Perlaza (Communist). This exchange occurred after Flores called people to “stop savage acts” and Perlaza asked for “respect to those people, who only need education that the Conservatives doesn’t consider.” This also caused arguments among netizens as they tried to defend the positions of their preferred candidates, in some cases, included some death threats such as the one made by @JusticieroSelva who did a photo montage of Perlaza being pointed by a gun on her head.

In regards of this happening the Communist Party released a communiqué through their social media, the core of the message included some expressions such as “We deeply condemn hostile attitudes that doesn’t contribute in anything towards a real and constructive social dialogue for the betterment of Huayramarca.” They finished their post by saying that they “reserve the right to exert any legal action towards said user, as hate messages should be punished with the rigour of law.”

The eight nominees did public appearances throughout the day in order to address the people and motivate them to take part of the electoral process. The first candidate to do so was William Mamani-Hastings (Conservative) and then Martha Mamani (Ñucanchi Ñan), all of the candidates addressed their main points of view in order to give some refreshment to their considerations to the voters, so their decision could be informed enough. Most of the nominees voted before noon, including a joint activity and press conference made by the Communist Party candidates on Puerto San Carlos principal school, they both featured the importance of planning and continuous improvement for Huayramarca in organisational and economical terms.

As the voting was drawing to a close, an unfortunate accident happened between a journalist and Armando Jamarara (Popular Party), as Jamarara apparently considered himself “offended” after being asked about “his populist agenda”, the candidate threw an apple at the journalists face and ran away towards his car, in a rage attack, the journalist ran behind the candidate and injured his nose by throwing at him a stiletto. Adriana Ramos, the offended journalist, was accompanied by colleagues to the nearest National Police delegation in order to report the happenings, she declared in a press conference that “offense was taken, as required, to take this process into the 1st Circuit of the Penal Court of Huayramarca.

After the incidents, Jamarara took some time to provide an official response, as he dodged media who was seeking for an answer in regards of his reaction. Jamarara released a statement in Twii.tur where he mentioned that “Being called a populist by a journalist was an all time low for the profession” he also urged the Journalists Association of Huayramarca to “take further action in order to improve the standards of a devaluated profession such as journalism.” Netizens and some candidates had strong reactions towards the declarations made by Jamarara.

Ricardo Flores, the Conservative nominee, declared that “injustified attacks shouldn’t be tolerated towards anybody, as people has to enshrine the responsibilities that freedom of expression imply for any individual.” Also Martha Mamani expressed her “utmost shock and dismay” towards the attitude of Jamarara, also added that she “declares in solidarity and sorority with Adriana Ramos” as she asked the authorities to open up a judicial investigation towards the aggression of the journalist.

Aside from that, the event was held with a deep sense of responsibility and maturity by the people, considering that our society is still healing the wounds of a long period without democracy and respect to the right of decision that we, as citizens of the Plurinational Republic, have enshrined in the Constitution. People was asked about their opinions in the process, and we share wit you five of those:

Christian del Cura Sacristán, 28 y/o; Tahuamanu, Madre de Dios: “The process has been done in quite an improvised fashion, there’s a lot of improvement opportunities for this. The officials need more preparation, as they were lacking certain organisational knowledge in the officials’ table, even they didn’t know how to use the indelible ink. For sure, this is a great sparring for them for the upcoming Generals.”

Digna Marciana Huamán, 75 y/o; Satipo, Junín: “To be fair, I’m quite disappointed on how unorganised have been the liaisons with us, old people. They haven’t given us preferential choice despite the SEC has informed that we had that privilege due to the heat wave, see, I’m drinking lots of water and I’m not sure if I’ll need to go to the bathroom, this would imply I’d lose my position in the queue.”

Bryan Marco Gol, 19 y/o; Sopocachi, Metropolitan District: “No issues for me during the voting process, has been efficient as I only needed five minutes to go in, sign-up and then going to the ballot station to deposit my vote. What I would suggest is that SEC must ensure that old people are given priority in the queues, they need it.”

Rufina Oscátegui, 45 y/o; Tulcán, Carchi: “The candidates aren’t the best, that’s in my opinion, Huayramarca deserves meritocracy through the election of candidates with enough academic background, proven capacity to manage a large institution such as a government or an important corporative entity. We don’t need anymore those people from the lumpenproletariat.”

Shamir Saritama, 32 y/o; Puerto San Carlos, San Carlos Archipelago: “There’s only one option for us in order to have a bright and collective future, that’s the Communist Party. They have sent some liaisons here in order to indicate us where we have to vote and even gave us some water or cookies in order to make the stay a bit pleasant, as the heat is really strong. The SEC should be ashamed of their performance as an institution, which has been mediocre to say the least.”

With mixed impressions, the day went, according to Juliana Márquez, head of the SEC as “flawless”, she also added: “People gave us a lesson on how to conduct, with maturity, a process that they are only getting used by after years of tyranny and oppression.” According to Márquez, the security program established solely for the even was “successful” as it “avoided further incidents or even troubles” that may have “caused dismay or even fear of the people to vote”. Having those facts contrasted with the reports of aggressions, there’s still need to perform some corrections in order to ensure something close to the ideal scenario made by Márquez.

David Carranza, tenant of the National Police has said that he already has a report on the happenings of the elections, this in order to emphasise improvement points in terms of security for Day-D in April 2nd: “About the incidents occurred in Cundinamarca and Parcoy, we already took notes in those regards, we will make sure to prepare our officers to prevent or dissuade that kind of risky activities. We need peace to achieve democracy.”

The final results of the electoral process were given at around 21:35, this after a fast count and then an upload to the system that the SEC had already prepared for data storage and publication:

Overall party count: Ñucanchi Ñan 23%, Conservative Party 22%, Communist Party of Huayramarca 22%, Christian Values Party 20% and the Popular Party with 13%.

For candidates we have: Martha Mamani with 96% of Ñucanchi Ñan marks; in Conservative Party we have Ricardo Flores with 48% and William Mamani-Hastings with 45%; for the Communist Party of Huayramarca there’s Diego Villacís with 33% and Cristina Perlaza with 22%; the Christian Values Party with Salma Machado obtaining 54% of votes and David Santos a 45%. Finally, for the Popular Party, Armando Jamarara has obtained 87% of the marks of his party. The remainder percentages in party lists belongs to the category of null votes (blank, invalidated).

After the results, we listened to some speeches made by the elected candidates:

Martha Mamani (Ñucanchi Ñan): “People has spoken, they are supporting the Citizens Revolution of Huayramarca by endorsing me and my staff. We are ready to make enough proposals to provide a better future to Huayramarca such as the incorporation of the nation into AORTA and more Anaian institutions, including our suggestion to create OAGHHE (Organisation of Anaian Groups of Hotels and Hostel Entities), in order to create an institution to provide memberships between approved hotels that match with certain standards. We want to make Huayramarca a top tourist destination and the premises should stand for said commitment.”

Ricardo Flores: “Huayramarca is getting rapidly tired about the incompetence of this government, people is frustrated and immigrating to Québec in flocks, we need to act as soon as possible in order to avoid a brain drain of dramatic dimensions. Bolstering the economy through the exploitation of our resources, solid financial management and wealth multiplication for every one of us. Conservative pride, Huayramarca wide!”

Cristina Perlaza: “Collectives are the way out of poverty and unemployment, if we are disciplined enough to organise ourselves and join efforts in order to plan and build better foundations for our future, we might stand a chance. These efforts involve cooperation with our Anaian neighbours, as we will learn from their experiences in order to make Huayramarca an example of communal organisation and resistance.”

Salma Machado: “With our faith put in God we want to announce our brothers that we, as the Christian Values Alliance, want to respect the motherland, the gift that God gave us and we must take care of it. Tourism, agriculture and Anaian integration will be, for sure, an important matter that we will try to get solved as fast as possible in order to keep Huayramarca in a path that’s supported by Him.”

Armando Jamarara: “We consider that we need to purge out the politics of this nation, crocked press, candidates and people who are heavily disconnected with John Doe, the common citizen. We need to listen and empower them in order to fulfill their needs and dreams, remember that we have only one Huayramarca and we have to build it together, no matter our views and actions.”

The next General Election, scheduled for April 2nd, will feature a more structured system of voting, aiming to be local and accessible for everybody without risking those who aren’t able enough to depend on themselves. The Huayramarcan National Police has promised to ensure a safe environment in order to guarantee that voting will be a family-friendly process for those who want to fulfill their civic duty.

Now with the ground set, the SEC has established a date for the first televised debate in Radio Televisión Huayramarca 1 in two weeks. The topics to be debated will feature: Economy, employment, technological advancement and Anaian integration under a 1 minute protected for the argumentation period and thirty seconds for rebuttals or questions towards opposing candidates.

[Saltstead]

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... Seelands Nüren — the one source for the day’s events in Sealand

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Chancellor Rudden announces that Saltstead will join another pan-Anaian organisation
The Rudden government moves on to getting people abroad after making it easier for them to do so by indicating support for AUNTIE

One of many memes floating around as a result of the Dannin Transport Expo

Veelheim, Härtoydom. Mere days after putting her signature to the AORTA agreement in the Ochre Islands, Chancellor Gabrièla Rudden has announced that Saltstead will join yet another pan-Anaian organisation: AUNTIE, the Anaian Union of National Transport Institutes and Economies. Announced at the Dannin Transport Expo in Mertagne, the organisation is set to coordinate transport standards across Anaia, with particular focus on air, train and automotive transport.

“Saltstead’s Federal Government is committed to ensuring safe transport across the Confederation and to countries abroad,” the Chancellor stated upon leaving the Internäsjonal Lofthaven des Härtoydoms, on her return from the Ochre Islands. “Ensuring that our airlines and automobile manufacturers will be able to participate in the pan-Anaian economy is a key part of securing Saltstead’s economic future,” referencing the theme of her government programme statement.

Responses online were mixed at best. While supporters pointed out AUNTIE’s stated aims of co-ordinating aircraft safety and automobile emission standards, detractors pointed out that most of AUNTIE’s purposes are completely useless to Saltstead, given that the country’s only land border (with Kryosis) has been closed off since time immemorial.

“We are an island for all practical travel purposes,” conservative political commentator Samuèl Slotmaker twii’d. “How does standardising our trains with Nova(?) Calania benefit us?”

“Rudden prioritises BIG CAR over your family,” notorious right-wing tabloid De Däglik Vriħtheid proclaimed to much mockery and mirth.

Leader of the Anti-Foxchester Liberal Party Sebastièn Witland was particularly scathing: “She’s never met anything Anaian she doesn’t like. She might join a dog hunting club if you put the name ‘Anaia’ on it.”

However, comments about AUNTIE’s naval aims were almost as common as the mockery, with the most common being a simple chant of “BOAT BOAT BOAT.”

“Maybe AUNTIE can help us chase down that godforsaken boat and we can finally have that final against Krytenia after all,” referencing Saltstead’s semifinal defeat to Aut-Ves-Nat at the first CAFA Cup.

The government is nevertheless entirely serious about integrating Saltstead into nascent pan-Anaian organisations. “The Government notes the stated commitments of AUNTIE in the realms of air and naval transport,” a spokesperson told. “These are critically important to the Saltsteadish economy and we have a vested interest in ensuring they are safe and effective.”

An unscientific online poll indicates that 9% of Seelands Nüren readers approve of Saltsteadish membership in AUNTIE, 6% oppose it and 85% are unsure. Scientific opinion polling indicates 48% approval for joining AORTA versus 32% opposition, with 20% unsure. Parliamentary votes to formally approve AORTA and AUNTIE membership have not yet been scheduled, but are expected within the next two weeks. ❧

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[New Lusitania and the Algarves]

STL | SERVIÇOS DE TRANSMISSÃO LUSITANA | Secção do Desporto: 90ºMundial (Qualificação)
The Usual Event and The Unusual Classic
Matchdays 2 & 3: NLA 1-1 EQS (Coimbra), NSZ 4-5 NLA (Sh. F.A. Stadium)

After a surprise result in Pemecutan, in which Paciente scored the winner, things had started unusually well for the Selecção. The Estádio do Mondego, in Coimbra, hosted the next match in time for the start of the academic season, translating in a large crowd in the younger demographic for another duel against Equestria. The Equestrian States were known to bring some sort of luck after fairly good runs in their territory in the past, though the Ponies’ travel to New Lusitania had always been luck for the Selecção. The squad itself also reflected this fact with a rejuvenated look – Lopes in goal was one of the more mature members; the defence’s composition being Mendonça, Ferradura and Castelo. Guerra, Palhagueira, Caldeirão, Veiga and Pereira in the middle of the park; Jota, Paciente and Silveira up front – some omissions, such as Cancela or Fernando himself, raised eyebrows, but with a packed stadium expectations were high.
The Ponies had other plans, reminding the world why they were at the head of the table for cycles, efficiently scoring first during the initial twenty minutes of the match. New Lusitania played well by all accounts and advanced well against a tough Equestrian side but trailed behind for the majority of the match. Caldeirão and Palhagueira are worthy of note for their top work in this strategic part of the build-up really showing their importance that night. Eventually, Silveira took the team out of the mud in the final third of the match, showing once again why he’s still in the squad. A point earned and sweat for but two lost, which may be of importance come the qualifiers’ end.
It seemed like the same was about to happen in Matchday 3, with an unlikely foe – Nimishzz, were, by all accounts, a supposed walk in the park for New Lusitania. There was, however, a slight caveat in that entire sentence – New Lusitania. In their intense making-mountains-out-of-mole-hill skills, from the day they landed for their away match, trouble arose. FC Sevilha players (Domingues, Cancela, Veiga and Paciente) were called back due to irregularities and an investigation concerning the club. Fernando was indisposed and Palhagueira had gotten an injury during acclimatisation training the day before. It almost seemed like bad luck hung over them this weekend… or that everything was being done to make it as hard as possible, the game may go into the high numbers.
… That it did, in the end. It was a classic in terms of the scoreline and there were some great moments in the match, but it was far from the best the Selecção has produced, especially considering only half the squad was really available. Goals left, right and centre in the first half with New Lusitania quickly getting ahead by two, it all seemed done and dusted… with Jota and newcomer Braz really working in syntony today. Two goals from the duo, one each and it was looking good. Just before halftime, a goal from the opposing side gave something to ponder over the next quarter hour in the dressing rooms. It must have left them with some sort of doubt seeing as the hosts just ran past the Lusitanians when the clock started running again in the second half – all of a sudden, it was all square once more.
Nimishzz actually managed to take the lead later on much to the surprise of anyone in the ground, the New Lusitanians back at home or anyone who was passing through it on the television set by any chance. Caldeirao just about kept them with an excellent cross over into the net, with the help of João Pedro, who had just come on. Braz demonstrated some more skill by putting the team back in front again heading it in for 3-4 on seventy-eight minutes – all they had to do was hold on. A tough ask… and when the Nimishzzians came storming down the flanks once more, Ferradura was forced to go for the professional foul for a sending off… and a penalty for the tackle in the area. A clean and cool posture gave the unranked side something to cheer about once more, it was all square, nothing to separate them at four all. Despair already running through some of the worried faces in the Selecção as time was almost up – additional time, only three minutes. The clock ticked away ever more quickly, and they only just managed to pull another rabbit out of their hat. New kid Braz going for his hat-trick truly deserved the alliteration of hero in this match after just pulling three points off thin air! It wasn’t a game for the faint of heart, no was it originally intended to be so (!) but it was definitely one of those matches that never left you bored.
Francisco Grilo applauded both teams today though criticised his own after the match: “Of course we never want to take credit off anyone and even with some great performances, the team was clearly not at its best today and just because a few of our players aren’t available… yes, er, even if it’s some of the bigger names…, we…can’t let that affect the way we play too much if we really want to fight for a place in ’90.” The Selecção return to action in mid-October with big clashes against second-seeds Siovanija and Teusland, as well as, Muralos…

[Abanhfleft]

Not-So-Young Guns, Part Three

It had been so many years since he had seen her in the flesh, but even then the mere mention of Kelly McGinnis's name was still enough to get Gareth Williamson's heart beating fast. It had been a literal decade since the two of them had last had a face-to-face conversation in the flesh. It had been at an airport (Gareth wasn't sure which airport it was, but he was pretty sure that it was at an airport) and Kelly was on her way to Mercedini to finalize a transfer to some club over there. Gareth had wanted to say goodbye, and he had been able to do that, but there was something else that he had been unable to say at that moment, something that he had regretted keeping to himself for the past ten years. But while he knew that it was now probably too late to admit it to her, a part of Gareth still wanted to say it to Kelly, even if it was only to achieve a sense of closure for him. But he never imagined that he would actually get the chance, the opportunity, to say it to her until now.

"Is something wrong with you, Gareth?" asked Jason Sagnep, the part-time defensive midfielder and full-time oil well worker who had come to the bar to look for Gareth. "You look kinda flustered."

"No! I'm not flustered! I'm fine! Just fine," Gareth replied, shaking his head. "You said Kelly McGinnis was looking for me?"

"Yeah, that's right," Jason nodded.

"Well then, where is she?" Gareth asked.

"Hang on a minute, pare," Jason muttered, and he went out of the bar for a few moments before he returned with a woman in tow. "There he is," Jason told the woman, pointing at Gareth.

It may have been ten years since they last saw each other in the flesh, but to Gareth, Kelly still looked as beautiful as she had at that time. Sure, she was a little bit older than before, and there were a few lines on her face that hadn't been there before, but overall she still hadn't changed much. It did feel a little weird seeing her in person after he had spent so many years watching her on a TV screen, though, but this was hardly the time for Gareth to bring that up.

"Hi," said Kelly, waving a hand at Gareth.

"Hi," Gareth said back.

"I'll be leaving you two here to talk about… what you need to talk about," Jason muttered, and then he went out of the bar once again.

"So, what are you doing here?" Gareth asked. "That qualifier was last night, right? And it's six hours by plane from Wanda City to here. You must be exhausted."

"Well, now that you mention it, I do feel a bit tired," Kelly sighed. "Can I get a drink?"

"Sure thing," Gareth nodded. He then turned to the bartender and ordered, "Water for me, Wayne. I've still got a game to play later."

The bartender nodded. "And for the lady?" he asked.

"Sure, water's fine too," Kelly nodded back.

"Two waters coming right up," the bartender said. He reached down behind his counter and brought out two small bottles of water, which he laid down between Gareth and Kelly. "I just remembered, I need to check on the inventory," he then said. "Do you two mind watching the joint while I'm gone?"

"Go on ahead, Wayne," Gareth nodded. "We can handle ourselves."

Gareth then turned back to Kelly, who had immediately picked up one of the bottles of water and drunk nearly a third of its contents. He waited for Kelly to finish drinking before he continued their conversation. "So what brings you to Haranguer, Kel?" he asked.

"Would you believe me if I said that it was you?" Kelly asked him back.

"Me?" Gareth said in disbelief. "What do I have to do with it?"

"You do know that I just turned 30 a few days ago, right?" Kelly asked. "Do you still remember when my birthday is?"

"Why does this feel like a trick question?" Gareth said jokingly.

"I'm dead serious here, Gareth! Anyway, once the clock struck midnight, I realized something. You wanna know what that is?"

"What?"

"This generation, our generation, is about to come to an end."

Now that was something that Gareth didn't expect her to say at all. "I'm sorry, what?" he repeated.

"Wait, no, that didn't sound right," Kelly shook her head. "What I meant to say is that our generation of players, the guys who came through with us from Under-18 3 and 4, our time is nearing the end."

"What are you trying to say, Kel?" Gareth asked. "You do realize that you're beginning to sound like those guys on the street that say 'The end is near!' and all that kind of shit. Besides, the average age of retirement for a Premier League footballer is around 35 to 36, so you've still got about five years or maybe more left in you."

"It's not about careers, Gareth," Kelly sighed. "Well, maybe it is, somewhat. But the main thing that I realized after my birthday is that most of us who were on that Abanhfleft team in Osarius for the 3rd Under-18 World Cup had never talked to each other after the Di Bradini Cup."

"Geez, Kel, that's a lot of cups," Gareth said. "I can barely even remember what I drunk from my cup last night, let alone what happened in some world cup a whole decade ago."

"Gareth, will you please stop joking around and take this seriously?" Kelly asked in an exasperated tone. "God, ten years on and you still haven't changed."

"Good to know," Gareth snorted. "And ten years later, you still love to play the passive-aggressive game. You come here to my town and ask to see me and catch up after ten years and then you get pissed at me once again."

A silence soon settled over the two of them, a silence that wouldn't be broken until Gareth slowly began laughing. "What's funny?" Kelly asked him.

"It's just so perfectly funny," Gareth said. "Here you are, trying to catch up with the guys and gals from your past and here we are reliving it once again."

"Oh," Kelly muttered, and a smile formed on her face. "When you say it that way…"

"All right," Gareth said. "Why did you come down here to Haranguer? Why come after me? Why not start closer to home with Elene and Charlene and Rona?"

"Precisely why I came to you first," Kelly nodded. "I see the girls all the time every time we have to play a World Cup qualifier or an Independents Cup game. I haven't seen you in, like, forever. And I wanted to change that. So why are you in Haranguer of all places? I remember from the last time I saw you that you were supposed to go to some place called Nassau Bay, was it?"

"Yeah, well, it's a long story," Gareth shrugged.

"Oh yeah? Try me," Kelly said.

     AUDIOSLAVIA 2 - 0 ABANHFLEFT 
RIJSBERGEN (27')
 CONSUEGRA (76')

         ABANHFLEFT 2 - 1 HAPILOPPER 
   MAGOMEDOVA (54')       JAMISON (84')
KELLERMAN (79' pen)

STARTING ELEVEN VS. DISPERTAG & RHUBARBTON
GK: Bronwyn Churchill
DF: Christina Singleterry, Brooke Augustyn, Tiera Walrath, Georgine Baum
MF: Sibusizwe Kiggwancha, Charlene Williamson
Elene Liner, Prudence Woodward, Amelie Rusev
FW: Hiroko Kellerman

[Independent Athletes from Quebec]

OOC: Season 2 of TWGS Vol. 2 continues with the metaphorical children of superagent Pierre McCarthy in style of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. I'd like to thank San Ortelio, Banija and Squornshelous in advance for their permission in letting me use their respective characters and/or settings for this series.

Pink Rabbits

PART 1 - Intro

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single shearer in possession of a good flock of golden sheep, must be in want of a shed.

However little known or displayed of such sentiments in a man, especially in a sports agent like Pierre McCarthy whose notion of a fa-muh-lee was not set to the very bones, this truth would continue to dip him into the cold ridges of holy water. Especially as the truth would continue to remind him about his part within the greater world, placing him as the observer of all that would unfold with the younger generation of sportsmen.

'Father,' said Arabella to her father one July morning, 'Have you heard that the Chevening Hall is bringing in a new tenant for once?'

'No, and life goes on,' Pierre replied, giving her the indication that it wasn't something of his interest. 'You and I, my dear, have watched the tides of wealth and prestige come and go anywhere we go, and those can be frivolous unless providing some meaning.'

'But it may be of your interest,' Arabella urged him back, her smile shining as brightly as that of Emily Romanescu on her good day. 'Especially as the mysterious owner of the house is someone you probably know. Maybe not a direct client of yours, but at least someone who you would have enough confidence to approach for the future-time.'

Pierre McCarthy stayed silent for a minute, indicating to his daughter that not only was he busy thinking, but also that he was finding ways to frame it the best way possible that he had no interest in another higher-up whose metropolitan lives he held simply too little interest beyond mere footnotes. 'Go on with that,' he eventually cleared his throat, looking back at his daughter. 'But you have to remember that someone's social credit, or fame, does not equate to their value to us.'

'Father, I mean, Pierre,' answered Arabella insistently, emphasising Pierre as a matter of breaking ranks. Of course, this wasn't something that her father liked to hear, but it at least works well in getting his attention. 'It's been said that there's no boring man without history who would dare live in such a mansion like Chevening Hall. Why wouldn't you wanna know about who he is?'

'Hm,' was all he said, before Pierre resumed talking. 'Well, tell me who he is, and I won't be against seeing the man.'

That was more than enough of an invitation for his daughter. 'Why, father, so you must know about Jock Pardue, the ginger on the men's tennis team at Farer. So he says that Chevening was quietly, without public record but with so many second-hand news from the boys of the Metropolitain blue (OOC: dark blue is the colour of Montreal Metropolitain university) that Chevening is taken by a businessman of Pavolan origins,' she cleared her throat, before continuing with the gossip. 'The words are that the Ortelian quietly came to visit a friend or two on Sunday afternoon, came to take a look at the house on Monday morning, and was so impressed with the historicity of the house that he gave an irresistible offer to Dame Pyeon immediately.'

'Conditions being?'

'That he is to move into the house by the end of the week, with sole use of living here for much of the year. The words say that he's a man of significant fortune on both sides of the oceans separating Rushmore and Anaia.'

'So one of those people,' Pierre nodded, as he underlined a paragraph from a briefing of a minor league baseball prospect. It was clear to him, based on the sound of it all, that this man was either someone whose heritage brought him back here, or really a foreigner who felt more comfortable in the Quebecois soil for whatever the reason he's yet to figure out. As for why, it's not something that he's had a clear answer towards, considering twenty-something years he's spent mostly abroad, but there were rough gist he was getting from the sound of it. 'Name?'

'Garth Bates-Nugent, they say.'

Ah, was what was on his mind. Garth Bates-Nugent, that's a name he's heard from time to time, usually on business columns of newspapers in both Cenial and abroad, and while they had never met each other, he recalled a couple of times his name was mentioned for sponsorship purposes. He asked: 'Does he have family here? He's said to be on news column every once in a while, n'est-ce-pas?'

'Not one born out of him, no, but he does have a sister removed by a decade, they say. Where else do you think Danielle Bates-Nugent finds her money? Of course, everybody knows draws money and attention anywhere she goes, but even then, you cannot ignore that the starting point needs to exist for obvious reasons.'

'Yes. Bates-Nugent I remember.' Pierre raised his eyebrows upon the mention of Danielle Bates-Nugent. There once was a time when Danielle Bates-Nugent, an outside hitter with solid height and decent fundamentals, was a major prospect for the national team alongside the likes of Alexanne Bayley, Park Da-Bin and Naomi Goldbloom. Unfortunately, her decision to switch into beach volleyball, and to represent her home country of San Ortelio, was not taken particularly well by some in the Quebecois indoor circuits. 'She's a solid player a decade ago, and I heard that she's still on point with the beach. Probably fits better. Still, how can this affect us?'

'Father, please,' replied Arabella, 'You should remember that the Maison M, whether it stands for McCarthy or Misiriyaa, isn't going to last forever. No matter how it goes down with my career, you should consider ways in which you can eventually walk off into the sunset. Garth may be someone with interest and acumen, which means you would not be making a mistake in making apt consideration to take a look at him.'

'And is that why he's here? With Misiriyaa in mind?'

'Of course not, and if anything this house is probably not in his mind as well,' answered Arabella. 'But the words say that he's one with a penchant for intrigue and anything that brings it, and Maison M corporation may not be out of his interest if we bring him to take a look at it. Or if we can visit him comme necessaire.'

'Valid argument, but let an occasion fall into that.' said Pierre, giving his daughter a stare. 'You may go on your own time, but remember that you have your own commitments that involve not to fool around with my clients. Especially the children still living there. Jean-Christophe may have moved out, but you know the rest aren't so settled, so to say. They may like the best of occasions, but you have to think of them like your equals, those of your age.'

'Those in the Misiriyaa should worry less about it. But let's be honest - whoever resides in a house of several athletes, whose abilities alone bring attention and people, will find themselves in neverending drama. You have done your best to protect me from the troubles all my life, father, but you cannot insist this will be the case for others forever.'

'That's true, but the house still exists to give semblance of a home to these kids, Bella. You know all about the safeties, that's how your mother and I raised you.'

'But, father, you should still find time to see Mr. Bates-Nugent when he moves in later this week.'

'Gah, that involves unnecessary business,' Pierre rolled his head twice. 'That is more than what I would like to work for.'

'But please think about this for Misiriyaa. You have to think like an establishment now that you are back here. Apparently the people back in Farrer are approaching him for athletics funding, and are determined to make use out of their alumnus. So indeed you should think about seeing that man, for he may be interested with you, and maybe he will be able to provide bit more for your metaphorical children. Or at least give them more options.'

'You are thinking of them too much like commodities and not like genuine persons, Bella. I dare say he will be glad with Maison McCarthy, but Maison Misiriyaa has genuine human beings who I know is not best off to being left in the hands of someone I have yet to really know in person. I will throw in good words for any of them, but don't let them just be arranged into circumstances that I could only find to be no more than miserable.'

'Come on, Pierre,' Arabella shot back after rolling her eyes. 'This isn't a dubious plan, or even a marriage plot. But coincidences can be designed, and maybe we'll be able to say that something significant in their lives were partly thanks to what we set things up for. Zinaida may be better off if there's stability, for one, but so are others - has that not how the Majesties have met?'

'First of it all, we do not exactly know the stories behind how they met beyond 'well they met at the Winter Olympics in Electrum', but Her Majesty's legitimacy to the throne would not have been questioned even without marriage to another royal,' answered he, 'This may have been a question for late Jacques IX for his father the Henri VIII or grandfather Sylvain IV had married a royal or even a noblewoman of high ranks, but his case was more than resolved by being a war hero, the conqueror of Nazi Felix and Holy Republican Empire. Daughter of him and Elizaveta Dolgorukina has more legitimacy than anyone since Henri VIII.' He then continued explaining, 'Franck Rosenshield, on the other hand, can testify more to how lives can change by just somehow ending up being at the right place at right time.' (OOC: Francois Rosenshield isn't a major character in this storyline, but he will be part of a storyline currently is in planning stages by another NSSer)

'Yes, but Frank is a family friend of ours and he willingly chose to leave home as well,' Arabella reminded his father of their trip to Cabo Azure just a year ago. 'He seems happier than ever there, and I don't see why they would be unhappy if something beautiful is created out of whatever we throw at Zina, J-C, Joelinton, or Natalie...you know what I'm saying papa.'

'Yes, but plans come with responsibilities too, Bella. That's how the profession works - on trust and responsibilities. You won't withdraw from a match out of frustrations, won't you?' he asked. 'You are a professional, and you are expected to stick to it.'

'No, I am not a quitter. But you need to stop thinking that doing nothing will work out. Father, you have to think of yourself. Please,' she gave a light plead.

'Will consider then. Let life fall into it, and I'll work on something.'

Pierre McCarthy was an odd agent, someone who even his daughter, the only companion of his own flesh who she's lived twenty-one years with, has failed to understand at times. Arabella's mind was bit less tripped up. But Arabella McCarthy, who has spent first eighteen years in Ceni before moving to Montreal to attend college and Tennis Quebec's national team program with her father, always had plans of her own too. Of course, more will be told about them in due time.

[Eura]

WORLD CUP 90 QUALIFYING GROUP 6 – MATCHDAY 2
Geisenfried 1 – 3 Eura
Scorers: Woodman 25, Robson 42, Atkinson 90
Lineup: 13. E Palmer, 4. J Menard, 5. T Green, 15. K Sherwood, 6. M Rowland, 8. V Robshaw, 11. B Malone (sub Coffey 77), 12. D Bowman (sub West 57), 22. A Woodman, 9. S Robson (sub Tomlinson 82), 14. C Atkinson

WORLD CUP 90 QUALIFYING GROUP 6 – MATCHDAY 3
Eura 1 – 1 Nyowani Kitara
Scorers: Sutton 50
Lineup: 1. V Simm, 21. H Wheeler, 27. F Stephens, 15. K Sherwood (sub Robshaw 79), 25. A Coles, 3. L Almwood, 6. M Rowland (sub Gates 74), 28. C Rogers, 7. M Woakes, 10. T Sutton, 9. S Robson (sub Tomlinson 66)

---

’It won’t do, Carl. It just won’t.’
‘Yes, I understand that Ian. It isn’t as simple as going all bull in a china shop though.’
’And why – hmph! - not?’
‘Pardon? I didn’t catch that.’
’Why not be aggressive? Listen…’ The Prime Minister gasped in pain down the line, leaving his Foreign Secretary concerned. ‘Is everything alright?’
‘Bloody doctor is insisting we deal with the back issue now, in the middle of a meeting. Yes, that was directed at you Cara. Hurry the fuck up.’
‘Should we really be discussing this with prying ears lying around?’
‘Oh, don’t worry, I’m sure she has all the right clearances. And if not, well, there’s plenty of prisons. And that’s where she will be going if- argh!’ Foreign Secretary Rutherford didn’t need to be in the same room as his boss to tell that his chiropractor had “accidentally” clocked Prime Minister Smith in the ribs. Undeterred, the Foreign Secretary continued. ‘If you feel strongly a more aggressive strategy is called for, I can do that. For what its worth I agree with you mostly. You just need to be aware that success isn’t guaranteed.’
’Hah. You think I don’t know that? The last couple of years has been one long string of bastards kicking me in the groin, politically speaking. Just sort it. You’re the Euran Foreign Secretary for Pete’s sake, so go and act like one.’

Smith hung up, leaving Rutherford to ponder his last words. What the Prime Minister was requesting in practice was the very opposite of what would be expected from Eura’s chief diplomat. The Euran diplomatic playbook was well known; establish all the facts and identify leverage, approach with tact and seriousness, be willing to get into the grubby details, and above all have patience, waiting for your moment to make your move once everyone else in the room has outed what they really want. It usually worked wonders, though maybe it helped that most of Eura’s negotiations were bilateral – and one sided.
This was an altogether different situation, as the inconclusive dialogue on Day 1 had shown, where Rutherford and the Euran delegation largely sat back and let others do the talking, a more traditional part of the Euran diplomatic approach in the early stages of a summit. It was a complicated multilateral negotiation involving allies, enemies and dependents alike, with no obvious clean deal on the table, and no prospect of an arrangement that could make everyone happy. Above all, Eura’s ailing Liberal regime needed a win from literally anywhere it could get one, meaning the pressure was on, more than it might usually be for fixing a regional proxy war that didn’t directly threaten the motherland.
So, Rutherford thought to himself, No niceties. No pissing about with “how’s the family” and “constructive dialogue”. No “kumbaya”. Just ruthless self-interest. Get in there, get our allies some meat to chew, pay off the third parties, and crush your enemies into the dirt – and make them feel like they somehow won doing it. And so the mild-mannered technocrat went to war.

---

As a first step, Rutherford needed to be on the same page as his allies. Above all that meant getting Nephara singing Eura’s tune as much as possible. It meant giving Corvistone a proverbial cuddle. It was a warm evening for doing so, as Day 1 drew to a close.
‘Medina! Long-time no see, how are you?’ Medina Klose, stuck in a corridor with only her Euran opposite number for company. Perfect.
‘Indeed, Carl. I’m sorry we didn’t catch each other earlier.’ said Nephara’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Medina Klose, making a slightly unsubtle (but only implied) complaint about the Eurans silence on Day 1. Klose had been in her role for 4 years, but they had known each other for longer, through previous foreign policy work, and the Nationals lesson-learning trips to Liberal party headquarters during the dominant Yarley years.
Still, that didn’t mean she couldn’t be spiky with him. She was understandably concerned about Bastion’s reluctance to get in the mixer so far.
‘I joke, obviously, but we bloody well could have used some reinforcement at the end back there. We were trying to dunk Malik’s head in the shitter, and you weren’t there to hold back his hair.’

Rutherford broadened his smile and directed her towards the door of his suite, opening it and standing aside. ‘I can only apologise. Let me treat you to a tonic and we’ll call it even.’
‘Really?’ she laughed. ‘Carl, I’m not sure you heard but, chivalry is in fact dead. Even if you lot have taken a while to catch up.’
‘I’m a Euran man in my late fifties. Cut me some slack.’
‘Pssh. Old habits die hard?’
‘Uh-huh. Really though, if we talk out here, who’s to say some porter won’t record the whole thing and send it to the papers? Come in. There’s a drinks cabinet on the side. Have a glass of whatever you like.’ She gladly got stuck into a slick looking bottle of gin and some equally overpriced tonic. ‘This is expensive stuff. Not claimed on your expenses, I hope?’
‘Ah, it’s all in the Foreign Office budget, don’t you worry about that.’
‘Riiight. I’m sure the Directus Post would love that.’
‘They had better, our party gives them an audience. Or maybe it’s the other way around. Who knows? Anyway…this business.’
‘Yes.’
‘Clusterfuck, isn’t it?’

Klose raised an eyebrow. ‘Carl Rutherford MP, straight-talking man of the people? Never thought I’d see the day.’
‘I can be spontaneous!’ he replied, repeating a phrase that had unfortunately failed to prevent either of his divorces.
‘As earlier, joking, you bloody idiot. What’s got you so tense?’ As if by fate, EBC News cut to the latest Euran national polling on his wall-bracketed television.
‘That disaster there, rolling towards me like a heart attack.’ Rutherford’s voice turned bitter, rueful even. ‘At this rate we’ve got about a year left until Harry Barnham fucks us out of existence. Years of power squandered. Decades. So, you know, to be frank with you Medina, we need a win sharpish.’
‘Ah,’ Medina said with an inflection in her voice, as if a great truth had been revealed, ‘so you’re needing favours?’
‘No. Our fair share is a better way of putting it.’ Klose’s eyes narrowed, ready to flinch, knowing that this was a prelude to a request that could morph into a demand.

‘I see. This is from the PM, I take it? Or are you doing him a solid?’
‘When the Margravine came to him’ he continued, carefully avoiding that question, ‘the Prime Minister gave her the strongest possible backing, and a guarantee that if it all went sideways, Bastion would come roaring in to save everyone’s bacon. Now that, the political and diplomatic cover we’ve provided, the blockade, the special forces contributions, and letting Lindt take the lead against the advice of much of our security establishment…it’s been a couple of years now and, to be honest, our man needs his due. This might be the last chance we get to remind the Euran people that the Liberal party don’t just lead Eura, they lead the region.’
‘Ok. What’s in it for us? I mean on a personal level, you know I’d gladly help you out here, but Lindt is determined this continues to be our project-’
‘We’re not saying otherwise.’
‘-yes, but, nevertheless, we’ve sorted this. Taken the risks, taken the fucking punches to be quite frank from all around. You lot haven’t had nearly as much grief. And still, you’ve won a war with a handful of dead, got your big dick-waving leg over the Banijans with that blockade stunt. What more could you want?’

‘A result’ Carl remarked with a harsher tone. ‘Look, I get it. We’re not trying to sweep in and take credit. This remains Nepahra’s big day out. There just needs to be an obviously Euran hand in the solution, beyond acting as your boy’s and girl’s taxi to the fight.’ Rutherford poured himself a whiskey, a classic beverage of the Euran political class. As he did so, Klose glanced back at the television.
‘What if you’re gone in a year? There’s no point us returning the favour now if you’re going to be kaput.’
‘If we lose the next election, you will have a Social Party government. Harry Barnham is the walking definition of the Euran anti-communist social democrat tradition. He roasted us over backing the impish little commie the Kitarans call President.’ Rutherford scoffed, securing a knowing smirk from Klose. ‘But,’ he went on, ‘he and his coterie are not going to forget that you lot were her biggest cheerleader. Or how close you and Lindt are to us. And they’ve made too much hay of us backing a violent autocrat to row back if they get into office.’
Klose nodded along, the implication clear. ‘If Barnham gets in, the golden years are over?’
‘In short, yes. No-more crumbs for the Cormorant, as Ian would say. One of Barnham’s first orders of business will be putting Corvistone in its place until your party are turfed out by the centre-left.’

In truth, Rutherford had no idea if that was true or not. He’d gathered that Barnham was cool on Lindt, and obviously the Socials were not natural allies of a centre-right party, but it was all second-hand knowledge; for the sake of this conversation, he made it sound definitive. Klose, the leading candidate to succeed the outgoing Margravine Lindt, sped up the swirling of her drink. ‘Yeah, it’s a thinker.’ Klose and Rutherford had never discussed her own ambitions for the Nationals leadership, and she didn’t care to ask what had prompted him to take an interest; at best he knew her well, at worst the OSI were tapping her phone and he knew her too well. Either way, his point seemed to change her calculus. Perhaps the thought of the Nationals big business donors watching their Euran shareholdings dip made her nervous. ‘Well, what can we do?’
‘Almost everything you’ve been saying publicly, and privately to us, has been perfectly acceptable.’ Rutherford was referring to Euran-Nepharan joint discussions of the future of Nyowani Kitara, part of a long running co-operation on the Nepharan-led intervention in the country. These had given Eura a good idea of Nephara’s positions before the summit had begun. However, some of Corvistone’s strategy had been worked out by inference or, if in absence of any other evidence, educated guesswork.

‘We are not so on board with your intentions regarding the elections.’
Klose feigned ignorance. ‘That’s Nafuna’s intention. Not that we don’t agree with her, mind you.’
‘Come now, Medina, we both know that isn’t true. There’s no way that egotist accepted she can’t just print ballots with her name by every box. Anyway, whose idea it was is beside the point. I’m afraid we can’t go along with it.’ Klose, until now cordial and friendly, suddenly became very severe.
‘I hope you’re not suggesting you want to blow a hole in our strategy Carl. Because that would be really fucking grim.’
‘Of course not! That’s why I’m speaking to you. But listen – do you really think the international community are going to accept an exclusively Nepharan-run electoral process? When you were the main sponsor of the person who fought so hard on the basis of elections being counter-revolutionary?’ Frustrated, Klose shook her head and unintentionally thundered back at him. ‘I can’t stress to you just how fundamental it is to our project that this is a Nepharan-made election, born and fucking raised. Its about more than pride – more like cementing a legacy. It’s how we undo hundreds of years of arseholes from every corner of the region giving us shit, thinking of us as tattooed murder-queens and nothing more, nothing less.’

They stood in the jet-wash of Klose’s rant for a moment, letting it sweep over them.
‘I-‘
‘No, you don’t understand, don’t insult my intelligence.’ Klose’s interjection was a shock. Rutherford was taken aback. Evidently, he had missed something. He did not anticipate this being such a sensitive subject. ‘Sorry. This whole thing is, well…’
‘Maddening?’
‘Yeah.’
‘Well, imagine how I feel. The latest polls say I’m going to lose my bloody seat!’ Rutherford’s self-deprecation deflated the balloon of tension between them, and Klose relaxed. Anyone who said empathy and personal rapport didn’t have a role in international relations was being proven wrong.
‘Carl, I really don’t see how we can move on this.’
‘Forget what we want a minute,’ Rutherford reasoned, ‘and think of the bigger picture. Is running this election really going to make Nephara look like a model democracy? Constructing liberty where there is none is no cakewalk. Just look at Sameba – it’s been over a decade, and we still haven’t sorted the bastard place out. You can’t just export democracy.’ Rutherford was engaging in a bit of doublethink here, given that is exactly what Nephara and Eura were attempting in Nyowani Kitara, but he didn’t let it stop him.

‘It’s not going to be clean. There will be no happy ending, and probably not any ending while your party is in office. It’s going to be years of painstaking work and compromise, probably some continuing violence and insurgency, and at the end of it no-one will thank you, even if it doesn’t go to shit. And will it even bust the old view of your country? I don’t know about that.’ He took a deep sip from his whiskey. ‘No, I don’t think people will look glowingly at an overwhelmingly white, wealthy social democracy marching into a country like Nyowani Kitara, patting its leaders on the head and saying, “its ok, you’re a democracy now!”. It’s not a good look. Not one bit. If Nafuna wasn’t so dependent on us, somebody as allegedly left wing as her would already be calling us neo-colonialists. Which is ironic given she’s part of a settler ethnic group but, well, that’s another debate for another time.’ Rutherford, normally a moderate drinker, had emptied his glass. Klose, refined in taste but not shy of quantity, had polished hers off even earlier. ‘Another?’
‘Maybe not. We’ll need to be sharp tomorrow.’ She glanced back at the television yet again, which had now moved on to other stories.

‘I suppose, the question is, what’s the alternative you’re going to suggest? That gets us both what we want.’
‘The answer is the CRC.’ Rutherford brought up his phone as it buzzed. The PM was checking in, again.
‘You were saying?’
‘Yes, sorry. The CRC. That’s how we do this. The CRC runs this election under the treaty that will eventually be signed – there will be a CRC badge on everything. No non-Rushmori interference, and certainly none of these whispers of Pavlovan unity nonsense. We make this a defining moment in the growth and legitimisation of the CRC in Rushmori life. Of course, Nephara, a leading member…’
‘…can run it under their auspices.’ Klose had anticipated correctly where Rutherford was headed.
‘Precisely. You run the security, the institution building, the lot – but the CRC get the key stake, get the branding, and eventually the responsibility of seeing the election through. Nephara doesn’t get its win by foisting democracy on Nyowani Kitara. It gets its win being the country that makes the CRC a player in matters of peace and war, rather than just regulating what types of lumber we can use or whatever.’

‘And Eura,’ Klose asked pointedly, ‘gets what exactly?’
‘Well, someone has to pay for it all. And who better than the economic leviathan itself? We’ll lead the creation of a CRC reconstruction fund – the Smith Fund, perhaps – which will pour tens of billions into rebuilding the shattered country. And we both get a win with our pro-CRC electorates for making a success of it. Guess which issue the Socials struggle to beat us on?’ Rutherford cracked a smile again in the knowledge that he had made his case as well as he could.
Klose, for her part, was thoughtful without giving much away. ‘I might need an hour to weight it up. Talk it through with Lindt.’ Rutherford’s smile grew into a wider grin. Winner, winner, chicken dinner.
‘Wonderful. There is something else.’
‘Oh god, Carl, I can’t unilaterally rewrite our entire bloody foreign policy over some spirits with you.’
‘Hold on, hold on. I don’t think this will be controversial. The Banijans – I imagine you were frustrated with their influence today?’ Klose was too smooth to flinch, but it didn’t take a mind reader to know that the Nepharans would rather throw the Kabaka in the Xandrian Sea than let him grandstand again on Day 2.
‘Yes. It wasn’t helpful. And, in short, we don’t think they should be here.’
‘That makes two of us. Let me be the bad cop, and that’ll make things easier for us both.’

---

As Day 2 of the summit commenced, His Majesty the Kabaka of Banija was feeling positive. Day 1 of negotiations over the future of Nyowani Kitara had felt like a strong start even if they ended on a sour note, the Nepharans tossing a diplomatic bombshell by calling for Malik Akongo to be exiled as a condition for peace. It was not unexpected though. Mwanga knew it would be the bare minimum Nephara and potentially Eura would expect after the capital they invested in ensuring Nafuna avoided defeat by her older brother. Peace would come with a price, especially when Banija had backed a losing horse. He had therefore somewhat made peace with the idea, and already thinking about how to reconcile Malik to a fate that the warlord probably thought worse than Nafuna’s preference – execution.

Anson Coltrane, the much-respected arbitrator from host nation Tikariot, summoned the representatives into the room. Mwanga intended to speak at the first opportunity, to make a powerful statement about progress the day prior. He-
‘The representative grouping from Eura wishes to speak. Foreign Secretary Rutherford?’
-he was blindsided.
The Eurans had been like statues on Day 1. Mwanga was not unfamiliar with Euran diplomacy, and his advisors had reminded him to expect that they would start slow, and come into play further down the line. But it was still a bit of a shock, after they had said virtually nothing throughout the opening of negotiations – simply nodding along to the occasional Nepharan suggestion – for the Eurans to suddenly step up and contribute.

‘Thank you, Chief Negotiator. May I start by thanking you for your nation’s wonderful hospitality, and ask that others do the same when they get the chance.’ There was a murmur of approval. As soon as the formality was dealt with, though, Rutherford dived in head first. ‘Towards the end of yesterday’s proceedings, there was a discussion about elections. It is the view of the Euran government that the CRC is not just the best body, but the only body that can lead the development of Nyowani Kitara’s democratic institutions, including elections, with any kind of independence. We hope our allies from within the CRC will take a leading role in that process.’ Mwanga instinctively glanced towards Rutherford’s Nepharan opposite number, Klose. Her poker face was exemplary.
‘We have also developed plans towards the rebuilding effort for the country and its economic future, which we would like to take a lead in discussing at the appropriate point of the schedule. The Euran government’s proposals represent an extremely ambitious programme for the rebuilding and redevelopment of Nyowani Kitara under the auspices of a treaty-agreed, joint CRC development fund.’

The proposals seemed like they had potential. Was that it?’
‘However…’
No.
‘…there is, I’m afraid, an unstated reality to these talks – at least from most of us here. That reality is worth clarifying and reiterating. It is not just the assessment of the Euran government but, as all parties would admit if pressed…’ Rutherford took a visible breath and, after, a beat, continued: ‘…that the current government in Nyowani Kitara and their security forces are decisively victorious in this conflict, and that what we are discussing here is not some kind of stalemate. Instead, it is an act of mercy, sparing unnecessary loss of life. With the counsel of ourselves and of our valued colleagues in Corvistone, this war is being brought to a premature end, with the government’s security forces on the advance, because Nafuna Akongo desires peace and the prosperity of her people. The reaction of Malik Akongo yesterday to the notion that he should be held accountable for his actions by a red-line over his future – a completely justifiable red-line – suggests a profound lack of willingness to recognise reality. Or, at the very least, a supreme reluctance. The reality is that if Malik Akongo and his backers do continue to show such reticence to compromise, President Akongo and her government have every right and reason to pursue a much harsher victory, and the KFF’s surrender, and Malik Akongo will be the one with blood on his hands.’

The Kabaka frowned as he digested Rutherford’s thoughts. He had been briefed that Rutherford was cautious, reserved, technocratic – not a pit bull.
‘There is also the business of the ongoing security situation in Nyowani Kitara. While a ceasefire is no doubt the key goal of these talks, and a lasting one at that, we in this room cannot guarantee that non-state actors and other dissenting voices won’t continue to pursue political violence in Nyowani Kitara. The country has been profoundly shocked to its core by this conflict – it cannot be expected to heal right away. As the only countries to meaningfully support Nyowani Kitara in preserving its own sovereignty during this conflict, it is the Euran government’s view that the Euran and Nepharan armed forces should be responsible for ensuring the full implementation of the ceasefire, and the disarming of non-government armed groups that will surely be agreed to by the end of these talks. I am sure that is the only peacekeeping solution that will be acceptable to Nafuna Akongo, who has made great efforts to learn from and mimic our modern, lawful approach to military operations.’

A mixture of reactions could be heard around the room. Nafuna Akongo was beaming. The Euran Foreign Secretary was fighting her corner. What a world!
‘I note that, in yesterday’s sessions, His Majesty the Kabaka and Isebantu Mutungi were very enthusiastic about giving us all the Banijan view – that Nafuna Akongo cannot be trusted to run a free and fair election process. Now, for what it is worth, while we do agree a neutral arbitrator should run the elections – the CRC in our view - we have been deeply encouraged by the way in which President Akongo is leaping at the opportunity of bringing democracy to her land, despite the sacrifice to her own power that requires – and if she cannot be trusted, that implicitly means His Majesty is saying we cannot be trusted. We, Eura, the nation that has bled more in war with tyrants than any country in this region, by some distance. I find that implication on our judgement profoundly offensive.’
The Kabaka was, to put it lightly, gobsmacked.
‘I would ask the Banijan delegation to reconsider quite exactly what they want to achieve with their presence here.’ Rutherford turned to face the monarch, steely eyed and unwavering for perhaps the first time in his entire career as he reached his final point. ‘After all, the Banijan attempt at intervening in this conflict, a futile exercise in neo-colonialism that prolonged the conflict and recklessly endangered the lives of Euran and Nepharan service personnel, in support of a dangerous right wing insurgent, has been the most destabilising influence of all in this conflict. So, I ask that that our Banijan friends consider their words more carefully, and remember that this negotiation is a step away from surrender – not the opposite of one. If you are genuinely interested in the future of Nyowani Kitara, you'll start by making it clear to Mr Akongo that his exile is non-negotiable.’
Rutherford finished his speech, sipped some water, and sat in the stench of his own diplomatic explosion.

[Muralos]

From a page in Georgo Zhong's diary
January 17, 2021
Now for some English practice. I haven't been able to get to it in a long time.

I feel like it is hard not to feel a little discouraged by our current run in the World Cup Qualifiers. We no longer have the momentum that we had from World Cup 88..... that one where we scored on Eura and beat South Newlandia and were in second halfway through? The sad thing is that competing in so many qualifiers and Cups of Harmony just isn't sustainable for our squad, and we don't see the kind of growth that other teams do in the multiverse: because of how other nations experience time, they can re-shuffle their rosters around, for example. But we are the same old squad, for better or for worse (sometimes for worse; as much as I love Rodion and the trio of Koralo, Ryo, and Aleksandro, they're all getting old... meanwhile the reserves are still scared to fill in their shoes, because those shoes are huge all the same.)

Losing to the Cordian Isles 0-2 today was kind of a sobering experience. We were seeing a team that was basically in the exact same spot as we were during the 87th World Cup qualifiers. This team rolled out of the 77th Baptism of Fire with a 5-1-0 record in the group stage and a quarterfinal finish (one round more than us). They were ready to show themselves who was boss. I just felt an energy, even if they weren't super attacking. The game was going at a pretty slow pace; lots of back and forth passing in the midfield, until Hannah Anderson just made an extremely clean, no-frills pass to Brenville Blue and boom. 1-0. Same deal for the second shot, just a different combination of players. They stay disciplined, they keep the ball moving, and we seem to not be able to keep up on the defensive side.

We play New Lusitania next. Our IAC rivals but in even better form during the World Cup. I'm ready to see shot after shot taken by Palhagueira and Silveira. Coach Li says that Rebeka and Aminda might start instead of Koralo and Aleksandro, and Lubimova will probably be in goal as well. Sure, it should be nice to have the substitutes play a larger role in our defense.

Then there's Pemecutan, the highest-ranked team in our entire group. It is fun to see another Asian nation (for lack of a better word – they are in the Melayu Archipelago which is much like Southeast Asia on Earth)... and it will be pretty scary to play them as well. I expect more attack.

[Commonwealth of Baker Park]

Cutoff for MD 4-5.
It's Still the Same as it was before

[Starblaydia]

Episode 2 - The Gatekeepers
S01 | E01

After eight years, the team stands at the threshold of qualifying
for the greatest tournament in the world for the first time. In their
path, however, is a difficult a win-or-go-home playoff.

Simeone Di Bradini
Striker, Word Cup 17

Narrator: The Starblaydi National Football Team, led by their first coach, Jean-Paul Georges-Ringeaux, had climbed from a lowly ranking of 116th in the world to break into the top 50. Before the 17th World Cup, however, the Starblaydi Football Association decided to make a change at the top...

As wonderful, joyous and optimistic a time as the team had in their debut in the Qualifiers for World Cup 15, by the time - just eight years later - that we come to World Cup 17, it seems that JPGR has probably taken Starblaydia as far as he's able to. After World Cup 15 came an absolutely disastrous Cup of Harmony, where the team finished in 10th place, notable only for the emergence of a 19 year old Simeone Di Bradini, who had to replace the injured David Bentley. After that, they went to Cockbill Street in the International Recreation Cup and lost every single game without scoring a goal.

It didn't help as a warm-up for the World Cup 16 Qualifiers, finishing fourth in their group of six teams, following that up with a single draw as their only return from a dismal Cup of Harmony. By the time the third Eagles Cup rolled around, the single win and two draws in six matches sealed the fate of the embattled manager who had taken up the challenge first.

They then turned to someone who was perhaps the most likely candidate, yet also the most surprising of all. Guylain N'Dumbu-Nsgunu had been a thirty-one year old player in the first squad, eight years before, and he was keen to move into coaching. So keen, in fact, that he had the Under-21 Manager's job for three tournaments and had just guided his team to a Third Place at the 5th edition. In what would begin a long-standing tradition for the SFA, instead of hiring a foreign coach with bags of experience and fresh ideas, they promoted talent from within their system.

Narrator: The N'Dumbu-Nsungu reign got off to an auspicious start, defeating Pure Evil by six goals to nil on the first Matchday, something that would long stand as the team's highest ever margin of victory. Up against a number of famous teams, the squad acquitted had themselves well.

When you beat Giant Zucchini, the home of Urk, home and away. When Commerce Heights can't beat you in two attempts, and when you take a point off of Iansisle, you know you're in good stead. They did the double over Oceaice, Liechtenistan and Pure Evil in those Qualifiers, and it was only Sarzonia who managed to get the better of them in two matches. This was a Starblaydi team who were really starting to come into their own, ranked 46th in the world at the time, the buzz around them was they were always better than what the publications said, and were just waiting for the world rankings, the KPBs, to catch up to just how good they really were.

There's a couple of moments that halted the Starblaydi surge to qualification in it's tracks. Twice done over 2-1 by Sarzonia, for one. It's an entirely reasonable result, in the grand scheme of things, but both times it was this stuttering start that stick out like a sore thumb at the beginning of two runs during the campaign where Starblaydia could have really kicked on. Both times they were coming off the back of dominant victories over Pure Evil, 6-0 and 4-1, both times after losing Sarzonia they would go on three match winning runs, defeating Oceaice, Liechtenistan and Giant Zucchini. Had those losses turned into draws, or even wins, we'd have been looking at a Starblaydi side with real momentum, really shaking up the presumed order with their results.

The two draws against Commerce Heights, 3-3 and 1-1, you'd have gladly taken that at the start of the campaign with no questions asked; they were the World Champions just two tournaments previously. It was really the Iansisle games where the opportunities faded.

Narrator: Iansisle were already familiar to Starblaydi sports fans in another arena - that of Ice Hockey - due to their participation in the Cherry Cup. The Gulls had been a dominant force until the purple and white-clad Rayzors had shown up, and here was the chance to get some modicum of revenge for the multiple axe wounds the new hockey stars had cased to the proud nation.

Iansisle, at home on Matchday six, that 3-2 loss in the dying minutes was a bitter pill to swallow for the fans, really putting a dent in their hopes for the group. When it came around to the penultimate matchday, with the former World Champions up last, Iansisle and Commerce Heights looked far too formidable a pair of foes for Starblaydia to overcome and break into the qualification spots in Group 9.

The chant would go around the seating areas where the Starblaydi fans sat: "Qualification? You're Having a Laugh!" It was such a happy and bubbly tune, yet at the same time the lyrics so self-deprecating. It wasn't even directly an attack on the players, it was more at the idea of expectations, you know, laughing in the face of destiny when it tells you that you're not The One.

Narrator: Holding Iansisle to a nil-nil draw, then hosting the recent World Champions at the Iota "Big Eye" Arena in Penningworth in front of 85,000 fans, it seemed impossible for Starblaydia to finish in one of the qualifying positions from Group Nine. But that wasn't going to stop them from trying.

Ceri Salisbury, rest his soul, had only scored once from the right-back position, during the second AOCAF Cup. Funnily enough, it had even been against Sarzonia, in a 2-0 win. Already you can see these rivalries are building up and layering on top of each other, even so early on. Salisbury was probably the first Starblaydi fullback who really bombed on and provided the width that the team sorely needed to make the 4-4-2 Diamond formation really work. With Salaam down the left and Salisbury down the right, they really started to set the template that future teams would follow almost religiously.

Salisbury's goal, from that free kick, was absolutely perfect. It's the kind of goal that should be good enough to win a game on its own, but when you're playing a former World Champion like Commerce Heights, it's only good enough to get you a highly respectable point. More importantly, though, it assured Starblaydia of fourth place in the Group, and a place in the nail-biting Play-Offs, giving a number of teams a terrifying last chance to go through to the World Cup Finals

All across Starblaydia and beyond, bitten-off nails are scattered across any carpet within sight of a television. Or at least they will be until the cleaner comes over.

Whether it was in the Lord-Protector's Residence, where he hosted the entire Praetoran Council, Residence Staff and a few lucky ticket-holders not going to the Stade de Socialisme in Eauz as part of a huge-screen Play-Off Party. Whether it was in one of the thousands of Armed Forces showings, or in schools, or town squares, or over the internet or at any of the thousands of parties, gatherings and general football enthusiast get-togethers: a football match is simply Starblaydia at prayer.

Despite not playing in Tanah Burung because of something involving guns and bombs, the home of the CommuniZts was nearly full with Tanah Burung Fans. The whole match was a series of hard challenges, great shots and even better saves: either goalie could have been man-of-the-match.

Absolutely nobody wanted to go home. Every player, every fan, every coach, they all knew that this was the one chance. Do-or-die, shit-or-bust, win or go home. It was that simple. Absolutely everyone was more nervous than they'd ever been for a football match. Across an entire qualifying campaign, you've ran your lungs out and suffered highs and lows, celebration and commiseration, and though there's a peak to the action, whether it's a crunch-time or squeaky-bum-time, you know that whoever's in the qualifying positions by the end of the campaign should truly deserve it, with the luck hopefully averaging out across the matches.

When there's one match, however, you can prepare all you like. You can try your best and you can even be better than the opposition on the day, but it's all about the result, and the result only. The coin flip falls one way, and it's elation, but if it falls the other way, it's dejection. You absolutely must take any and every chance that comes your way, whenever it happens.

The only thing that goalie did wrong was in the ninety-fourth minute, with both fans whistling for full-time with the scores at 0-0. Roberto Di Bradini, who had come on for the exhausted Ki-Jana Carter, played a long through-ball for his big brother. Simeone strode past the static and tired defence with a last burst of adrenaline.

It seemed that the Tanah Burung 'keeper had the same set of adrenaline as he rushed out to smother the ball. With a deft touch of the outside of his left foot, Di Bradini took the ball away from the 'keeper's challenge, bravely allowing his shins to take the force of the charging goalie as the ball rolled out of play.

Narrator: Though fans to this day can debate whether Di Bradini could have reached the ball to score before it went out of play, some seeing it as a cunning ruse to falsely earn the penalty, the official's decision at the time would be final.

There is no time left, absolutely none. The ref had been looking at his watch just before this incident, and the Starblaydi fans are already celebrating - albeit cautiously. There's never a guarantee that a penalty will be scored, but there's the chance for someone to make themselves into a hero for life - an icon who would send the entire nation through to their first appearance in the World Cup Finals. The only question would be: who?

The referee had no hesitation in pointing to the spot, despite the protests of Tanah Burung fans and players alike. Starblaydi players patted Simeone on the head, most of them not wanting to take the penalty he had earned. The referee indicated there was time to take this one kick and one kick only. He made the goalie stay on the line and practically screamed at the other twenty players to stay out of the area until the taker - Di Bradini - had kicked the ball.

What must it have been like to be in the centre of that roiling cauldron of noise and energy? Most of the fans in the stadium were supporting Tanah Burungm they were the more established side and they were the bookies' favourite for the match. How is it possible to have all that pressure on your shoulders, wearing the colours of your country, representing them in a team sport but suddenly break it down to a one-on-one situation where you're either the glorious hero, or the absolute villain?

As time seemed to slow down, Simeone Di Bradini took the penalty that sent Starblaydia to the World Cup Finals. He put it to his right, wrong-footing the 'keeper just enough to prevent him getting to the ball in time. As the entire Starblaydi nation went mad, all Simeone Di Bradini, their new god, could do was spread his arms out to the side and run. He nearly made it to the corner flag before he was simply enveloped by his entire team, even Rodriguez Da Silva had sprinted up once the ball went in. The referee blew for full-time and Starblaydia were a sea of white shirts and celebrations.

Final Score:
Tanah Burung 0 - 1 Starblaydia
(None) - (S Di Bradini 90+4 Pen)

For fans in white and purple, it was a fairy tale. It was third time the charm, and they'd be joining some of the best in the business in Kaze Progressa and Vilita. At the time it seemed like the culmination of the journey, finally making that breakthrough, but only those with a longer view realised it was actually just the end of the beginning. They were crossing the river for the first time on the hero's journey, and much bigger monsters were awaiting them in the Finals. But here, this match, was when they really started to believe in themselves.

Narrator: At the Seventeenth World Cup, a 46th-ranked Starblaydia were among the lowest-regarded sides in the tournament. Playing entirely in Kaze Progressa, they lost their first match to sixth-ranked Audioslavia, then they lost their second to 21st-ranked southern neighbours in Atlantian Oceania, the Lowland Clans. A storming victory against their other regional rivals, 9th-ranked NEWI Cefn Druids, would send Starblaydia into the knockouts in the most unlikely of circumstances. After beating 5th-ranked World Cup legends Europa Britannia in Extra Time, they would eventually bow out to 41st-ranked Melmond in the Quarter Finals to mark a dream debut in the most famous and prestigious tournament in all of sports. It would not be the last time they would visit the Finals.

[The 14 Stars]

Stars are watching us

Official the main story of the world cup https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRfmrE0ToTo


Chapter 1 back in time

Starsian church, 2009:

Male voice: ''Alexander-Maximillian Flare, do you take Marie-Helene Sayala as your rightful wife?''

Flare: ''Yes i do''

Male voice: ''Marie-Helene Sayala, do you take Alexander-Maximillian Flare as your rightful husband?''

Helene: ''Yes i do

Before the words could be said the newly wed couple gave eachother a passionate kiss, Helene a prominent female lawyer and one of the best soocer players of the country were now married.
All of the whole Starsian old team was there, even old Marcus Blade who was alot younger at that time and everyone saw that this was a couple made in heaven where it was love at first sight for the both of them.

However what they did not know was that this would be a short lived marriage, but in these few years they had they had alot of fun and lovingly moments they shared together.
they were 19 years old when they married having known eachother since they were 16 years old.
After they married they went on a honeymoon to Sylestone where they spent two full weeks enjoying themselves being husband and wife from now on in these times with good weather and a great stay.
During these days Flare was barely starting his career but already breaking all past records and Helene won one case after the other but they were so caught up in work they lost track of eachother

Doctor's office in The 14 Stars

Doctor: ''I've conducted my research on your explanation Mrs. Flare but i need to bring sad news i am afraid, i have to advice you to not get any children if you wish to stay in your current condition.
During the pregnancy several changes in the body occur that even for a normal woman are already something to think about, however in your case your health would be in severe danger with a pregnancy with a risk of death.''

Helene: ''So...i could never...no this can't be-.....all i wanted in my life was a happy life and a family and even that is now taken from me, is there really not something there can be done doctor?''

Doctor: ''I am very sorry, there is currently nothing i can do for you Mrs. Flare, i am very sorry to be the bearer of bad news like this.
My apologies, i wish you all the best i truly do.''

Later

Flare: ''I see so thats how it is, well they don't say things like that without a reason so it is something we really should think about because i don't want to lose you anyday my love.
We've been together for 3 years now, if a life without kids means i can keep loving you then thats how it has to be, you are the one for me and the one i've chosen to spend my life with.''

Helene: ''Mhm thanks you sweetie, i would never want to lose you either, you're my one and only in life but you know its hard to imagine your entire life without little kids either so it makes me sad too.
It never will become the perfect life we imagined it to be but we have to deal with it like we always do!''

Flare: ''True and we always did and will keep doing that, as long as i have you i nothing in life can ever be a problem''

Port Vale Hospital 2014

Doctor: ''Alright everything stabilized yes, tell me more about the patient nurse i need all information as quick as possible!''

Nurse: ''Alright her name is Helene Flare a lawyer who has suffered heart failure today and is currently not awake although we managed to stabilize her for now but the condition is quite bad doctor.
She always had a poor health it seemed but due to her youthful age it did not really show yet however when you look beyond what you see you can see clearly that her health wasn't strong to begin with.''

Doctor: ''Alright keep her like this for now, i'm not sure how long we can keep her like this so as soon as all direct family is here we will make a decision and not earlier as its pretty bad.
Her heart seems to have completely stopped functioning earlier right? and from the reports they managed to get her back but it did not fully work which is why she was taken to the hospital.''

Helene's mother and father: ''Hello there doctor we received the call we came here as quickly as we could, her husband is on his way as we speak we had contact with him earlier.''

Flare arrived 5 minutes later

Flare: ''Doctor please you've got to tell me how severe it is, is there anything you can do please!''

Doctor: ''I have to bring bad news im afraid, after analyzations we estalished severe heart failure and im afraid that she can't be saved anymore due to her already very poor health condition.
We can awake her once, but i can't tell you how long she will be awake, it can be a few seconds but also a few minutes it is impossible to say how long it will be but we can do this for you to atleast exchange last words.''

Flare and parents: ''Please do so''

Doctor: ''I will be taking my leave so you have some privacy, i'm terribly sorry''

Helene was awoken from her artificial sleep

Parents: ''Sweetie we're here with you, we'll be with you until the last moment''

Flare: ''Helene, i'm with you to and i'll stay by your side until the very end i won't let you down my love!''

Helene: ''Thanks....everyone...i'll always stay here with you even if not in person......i'll live on in your hearts.....i'll be watching over you all.........................

Flare: ''Helene no.....please....dont leave me! ........no......why.........of all people .........

Aftermath

After Helene died Maximillian got into a depression, he even quit playing professional soccer for 5 years because he refused to play out ofso called respect for his now dead wife he loved so much.
However this only made him more sad and he could be seen mourning her all day everyday, to the point that it wasn't healthy anymore and thats when Marcus Blade stepped in and visited him one day.

Flare: ''Oh Marcus its you? what do you want i don't play anymore so please go away''

Blade: ''Hmm and why is that that you don't play anymore, is it because you hate the game or is it another reason that made you hate the game so much that you'd never play anymore?''

Flare: ''You know that damn well, i can't bring myself to ever kick a ball again, i always played soccer but i never was there for her and all those times i forgot here and placed her second and i will never forgive myself that!
I have never been there for her and thats all because of that stupid damn game so leave me alone!!!!''

Blade: ''MAXIMILLIAN! open your goddamn eyes, don't you see it?

Flare: ''What the hell are you talking about?!"'

Blade: ''You are turning the things around, you realize she loved seeing you play right? did you ever realize that she went to every match you played just to see you out there on the field.
She loved to see you play, and who do you think would be the most proud of you if you stepped on the field once more?''

Flare: .............................................

Blade: ''Exactly, i look for a player like you, i'll help you get back i promise all i need is your trust in me to guide you back''

Flare: ''Hmm............when do we start?''

And thats how Maximillian Flare got back into soccer and he went on the become one of the greatest players in Starsian history winning several titles and going on until they day of today

Quakmybush

In the match with Quakmybush not alot happened however due to the diffrent line-up with several players getting rest it was a harder game to play but they needed rest for the Tumbra match later.
In the first half no goals were made and it seemed as if the match was in a dead-lock even if the Starsian were way more attacking minded and strong willed to score then their opponents on the field here.
In the second half they initiated once again the Invincible Lance tactic to break through the defence while protecting the player with the ball which did succeed and allowed Morris Valerian to score the winning goal and become matchwinner.

Tumbra

Our match against Tumbra was expected to be tough, we played really well and gave them alot of trouble when we kept coming back with goals respectively all scored my Maximillian Flare in this case.
His hattrick once again shows his importance on the team and especially the midfielders today did a great job offensively in supporting the attack with the needed passing work and combinations and passing work.
But sadly it was not enough because the Tumbrans scored 4 goals which means they take home the full 3 points placing us 4th in the current standings but with only 1 point diffrence with the number 2 nothing is decided yet!

Line-up for Starblaydia Match

GK - Princeton
LB - Yale
CB - White
CB - Moon
RB - Salisbury
LM - Diam
CM - Valerian
RM - Ray
LW - Redwood
ST - Flare
RW - Blade

Line-up for the Alezian Union Match

GK - Feeney
LB - Neville
CB - White
CB - Rodriguez
RB - Hollow
LM - Bernard
CM -Valerian
RM - Forsberg
LW - Sodorsund
ST - Flare
RW - Blade

[Ochre Islands]

The Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Peter Rollingham, knocked the open door to Senator Ginsley's office. 'Prime Minister..?'

Ginsley looked up at him, away from the briefing notes she'd been reading. 'Hello Peter, come on in. Another briefing note, I fear?'

'Afraid not, PM, little bit more serious than that' Peter said, shutting the door as he walked in. 'Emperor Boston's given us a bit of a headache.'

Lucy pushed her chair back and stood up in one swift movement, her hand struggling to find the appropriate button under the desk that would have sent half the building into the bunker underneath number 3 Lanton Street.

'Lucy, no need for that' Peter said, 'though that was also my first reaction when I got told the same.' 'So what's going on, Peter?'

'Well I've had a phone call from MORFA over in Krytenia. They'd been having a look through the land records trying to widen a motorway.' Lucy frowned. 'Peter, why is this your business?'

'Well, PM' he said, raising his eyebrows and shrugging. 'It turns out that there's a motorway services off the H15 in Krytenia that is, legally speaking, an integral territorial part of the Ochre Islands.'

Lucy stared back at him in silence, the only sound for a few seconds being that of a grandfather clock ticking away.

'A motorway service station? Where people stop for fuel and overpriced sandwiches?'

'Little bit more to it than that.' 'Well, obviously Peter, I didn't feel mentioning the newsagents and the car parks were quite necessary to ascertain your seriousness.' 'I'm being quite serious, PM. There's also a hotel chain.'

'A hotel?' 'Two to be precise. One eastbound and one westbound. Bridge over the top of the motorway linking them, all that sort of thing.' 'Interesting.' 'It gets more interesting than that, PM, which is where the headache starts.' 'Go on...'

'Well, when the Emperor had the land bought, he slipped a clause in which nobody noticed which gave the landowners the full freehold of the land it sits on, etc. etc.' 'Right..?' 'Anyway, the Ochres own this land "from slip-road to slip-road".'

The PM paused to think. 'So we own some slip-roads coming off Krytenian motorways, as well as the land the service station sits on, car parks, hotels and all?' 'Not quite, PM. The way the Emperor had it written means we own the land from where the slip-road starts, all the way down the motorway to where the slip-road ends. At the time, the people working for the Bostopian Foreign Office, the "Bostopian Anaian Treasurers of Stocks, Holdings, Investments and Territory" claimed it was to ensure the Ochres owned the bridge itself over the motorways, but it was written in, well, "Emperor Boston-speak" to the extent he's pulled the wool over their eyes and there are now tens of thousands of cars a day passing through what they think is a stretch of the H15 next to Plainfields Services, if they think about it at all Prime Minister, when in reality they are leaving Krytenia, travelling through the Ochre Islands and then going back into Krytenia, all in the space of about 0.85 miles.'

'Peter. Do you remember how much difficulty we had coming up with "The Republic and Community of the Ochre Islands" as our official name?' 'I do, yes Prime Minister. A lot of pushback from people who didn't want to be a part of a community at all and were quite happy in solitude running one-party states consisting of "them, them and them".'

'Precisely. How am I meant to push "The Republic and Community of the Ochre Islands and Plainfields Services" onto those sort of people?'

'Not sure, Prime Minister' Peter responded, as baffled by the whole thing as she was. 'What did the Krytenians tell you then, Peter?' 'Well, essentially, they'd like to keep the whole thing quite quiet, and whilst they'd like to publically recognise that it is part of the Ochres, they don't want to mention the fact that just over a mile and a half of the Krytenian motorway network is actually Ochre Island territory. They've instead propose we use it as our embassy in Krytenia.'

'A good idea, but why would we want to accept our embassy is a service station?' 'Well, PM, we'd be within our rights to point to the provisions of AORTA and put up border posts, but it would make us look like the bad guys-' 'Or worse, the Bostopians.' 'Precisely, PM. The Krytenians have suggested that they'd say it would be a revenge move for the Bostopians firing a missile over them towards a Starblaydian missile and killing that cow four years ago.' 'The one they put up a statue for?' The PM asked, giggling a little as she recalled that. 'That's the one. At worst they look a bit petty and our Ambassador has to make do with overpriced crisps and an repurposed empty retail unit whilst we get a proper embassy built, at best it saves us a lot on construction costs and buying land up again in the middle of Emberton somewhere.'

Lucy sighed. 'Peter, it all sounds too sensible a solution to quite a tricky problem.' 'It does, PM, and that's before I mention the invoice they've sent us for the road maintenance they've been – accidentally, it turns out - doing on our behalf since we won our independence...'

[Alezian Union]

This has been a repeated broadcast from my comic thread which you can find the link to in my signature below!
You can read my other comics and get to know these four characters there!
Hope you enjoy your visit there!

[Brenecia]

Metherwoll 0 - 2 Brenecia
(4-4-2) 1 - Finnan; 2 - Bravender (17 - Lovibond 68'), 5 - Leadbetter, 6 - Giltanan, 3 - Roscommon (c); 7 - Carpenter (15 - Fife 76'), 8 - Conway, 4 - Schofield (19 - Mikoliunas 56'), 10 - Byrne; 14 - Tristram, 21 - Lofthouse
Goals: Lofthouse 39', Tristram 52'

Brenecia 3 - 0 Sangti
(4-2-3-1) 12 - Tanner; 17 - Lovibond, 18 - Shrine, 6 - Giltanan, 3 - Roscommon (22 - Seeler 60'); 23 - Briggs, 8 - Conway; 15 - Fife, 11 - Brind, 16 - Leonard; 21 - Lofthouse (9 - White 71')
Goals: Leonard 12', Conway 45+1', White 78'

THE ROZELLE OBSERVER
Four wins on the spin lead to hope of Busukuma upset
Tara Ousted

It's been a while, but things are looking up for the Patriots.

Okay, things started out pretty bad with the whole Lathamford incident, but since then Brenecia's made a great recovery. Four wins in a row, two clean sheets in a row and technically top of the table by dint of goals scored. How did we get here?

EOT were first, Eura's Anaian backwash, and their Skorjiball-inspired strategy got torn down on the break time and again. Pity is they also managed to break down the defensive lines, three times, but hey. It wasn't a tidy win, but it was deserved.

OAM were next, one of the toughest tasks for Brenecia. Don't be fooled by their current state languishing at the bottom of the group, they're unfortunate not to be higher in the table. Peterne de Courbueil's early strike slipped past Finnan's near post but was soon cancelled out by Bravender, and after Brenecia chalked up a two-goal lead down the tracks, Ronan Vrely came off the bench to strike in the 82nd minute to make for a tense end to the game, especially as Brenecia's... uncompromising physicality lead a seemingly infinite injury time.

Nevertheless, Brenecia probably edged the game. Rather easier were the next two; Metherwoll's impressive debut made them a potential banana skin at home, but Wright switched to a direct 4-4-2, taking one look at that pitch and deciding the only recourse was slinging in crosses to two big strikers. The result: Lofthouse headed in a cross from Roscommon, then Tristram headed in a cross from Carpenter. At the other end, Metherwoll never seriously threatened. Now granted, they're running with a striker in Anthony Joule who hasn't scored a competitive international goal in his career. But it was nice to see Derdriu Wright figure out a way past them, regardless.

Wright did rest pretty much everyone for Sangti, and provided starting debuts for the Southern Star duo, Tanner in goal and Briggs in midfield. Neither actually had much to do in a comprehensive victory, though it did see rare goals for Leonard, Conway and what appears now a third-choice striker in the all-rounder Mhacha White.

That in itself is worth talking about. Danand Tristram has scored three goals in four, Jadwiga Lofthouse two from three. Tristram has been a recent Plan B, a tall timber striker for whom being a very good A-League centre-forward is about her level, and she honestly arguably should have buried more chances. But she's powerful, intelligent, good at hold-up play. And the northerner Lofthouse looks more promising, though not quite at the same level presently, still a little bit of a diamond in the rough.

That appears to be making a difference. More directness, more physicality. A tougher spine, experimenting with an extremely conservative double pivot of Schofield and Mikoliunas proving fruitful, though the more box-to-box inclined Conway's seeing plenty of minutes. And at the back, they're trusting in experience, with Finn Leadbetter still pretty entrenched as Brenecia's best centre-half, and Triss Roscommon, though certainly slowing down, still imperious.

There's been no classic performances, no standout wins you can point to. But there's a new and refreshing solidity to the team, and it makes you look up, and wonder. Banija are recent World champions but on a slightly low ebb of late, their golden generation aging out of the scene. Can Brenecia maybe even scrape a win away from home? No.

BRENECIAN NATIONAL TEAM SELECTION - FORTNIGHT 4
Goalkeepers: 1 - Anthea Finnan (Holdenberg City, EUR), 12 - Sorcha Tanner (Southern Star), 20 - Cairbre Dundalk (North Laithland, NPH)
Defenders: 2 - Clovette Bravender (Ulsa, EUR), 3 - Triss Roscommon (Revolutionaries, EUR, c), 5 - Finn Leadbetter (Holdenberg, EUR), 6 - Casey Giltanan (Workers Union, EUR), 17 - Felice Lovibond (Kingsgrove), 18 - Athelney Shrine (Southern Star), 22 - Mynah Seeler (Southern Star)
Midfielders: 4 - Ronan Schofield (Raynor City United, VAL), 7 - Kendra Carpenter (Wirr Tsi, CMT), 8 - Iseult Conway (Northern Union), 10 - Katua Byrne (KT Itzalovalle, AUD), 11 - Felicia Brind (South Laithland, NPH), 13 - Consaidin Garrard (FK Metropola Borograd, STL), 15 - Mathgamain Fife (Rozelle), 16 - Rhona Leonard (Kingsgrove), 19 - Kurtis Mikoliunas (North Hall), 23 - Skaidrina Briggs (Southern Star)
Forwards: 9 - Mhacha White (Farrenton Athletic, EUR), 14 - Danand Tristram (Kingsgrove), 21 - Jadwiga Lofthouse (Northern Union)

SCHEDULE
Lathamford 2 - 2 Brenecia
Brenecia 5 - 3 EOT
Oberour Ar Moro 2 - 3 Brenecia
Metherwoll 0 - 2 Brenecia
Brenecia 3 - 0 Sangti
Banija vs. Brenecia
Brenecia vs. Cabo Azure
Brenecia vs. Lathamford
EOT vs. Brenecia
Brenecia vs. Oberour Ar Moro
Brenecia vs. Metherwoll
Sangti vs. Brenecia
Brenecia vs. Banija
Cabo Azure vs. Brenecia

[Indusse]

IFA NEWS NETWORK
What's happening?

---

It's been quiet sometime since the national team has been playing in the World Cup. Everytime they play like the rest of the world, fans hope they qualify for the playoffs. Same happens in Indusse, waiting for decades of atleast a quality qualification for the World Cup Playoffs. Eventhough there hasn't been much managerial changes for Indusse all these years, the new coach Shane Newman has got a lot of hope over him. His former performances in various tournament for various nations have brought him to fame in Indusse. Shane Newman finally reached his heights after Indusse won the Thirteenth Independent Association Championship at Poafmersia. The IFA News Network reporter, Gabriel Giivarze was given the opportunity to interview Shane Newman and to know his plans and his experience till now.

Shane Newman, the most celebrated manager of Indussean National Team enters the room through the left end corridor. He has worn his coaching dress and moves towards the table near which Gabriel is seated.

G: Welcome! Welcome Mr.Newman! It's a honour to have you with us today. First of all I'm sorry for taking your coaching time for such a matter.

S: Haha, it's all good. Thanks for the welcome by the way. It's my honour to give an interview to the Association's Prime newsletter. It's also the right of the fans to know what's happening to their team.

G: Thanks for the consideration Mr.Newman, first of all I would like to know about your opinion on our nation, the team you're coaching and ofcourse it's fans!

S: You can think of having a positive answer to that question. *smiles* The nation of what we all call Indusse has been a wonderful experience to me. At the past, i thought this nation had no modern sports equipment and is a hell for the players. I meant that because at the last time the team played more than the Qualification Group Stage, then coach of the team said about the lack of sports equipment in the nation and the legend of how the team reached till then position due to their hardwork as well as luck.
But, when I landed here from my home at Baker Park i was totally astonished. This isn't a land which is so worse in conditions or is like a hell. The people here are so hospitable and at the moment when I landed i had recieved a wonderful reception. Another thing which brought up my curiosity is the Board System. The Board President was literally appointed by the President of the nation and out of everything, the Board President, National President and Team Captain were all the same guy. Nothing wrong unless they end up corrupted, but Baskar H Kumar has been one of the best politicians I've seen in my whole life. He is also an amazing captain and is capable of getting a group into unity. The Team at my arrival just needed a bit of fixes and a chemistry between the players and the staff. I was able to get it done and I'm really proud of that. Indussean National Team has got a lot of stars including Mersiás and the amazing Goblinoid called Grundjee. The fans are so loyal and straight forward that they're one of the largest strength of this team.

G: I agree one hundred percent with you, this world cup we saw that we haven't won a lot of matches yet. Do you feel this is a good sign?

S: Well, we are doing our best first of all. Certain conditions of the situation changes how the results ends up in. I have to agree that we haven't got a lot of wind from the last five matches but it's not a bad start. We still can get to the top and crush those people out there. We have got a lot of Veteran teams in the group and as a plus point we have got veteran players too. People like BK10, Butea, Budtedjson and our wonderful goalkeeper who you all know are all examples of our strength.

G: Captain Baskar H Kumar had made it clear that this would be his last tournament for the national team. This means he is retiring from International Football. Is this true? What would happen to the team without BK10 and who could replace him?

S: "Is this true?" is literally interesting. *laughs* It's all his wish to whether he should or shouldn't retire. If he did say that he's retiring then it must be true because it's no rumour. If he's retiring then we would have to find a replacement in the playing XI. Just because Baskar is retiring it doesn't mean that it's the end of the team. He's a really important part of this team and would be forever. It's the end of an era and a phenomenal perfomance.

G: Who would replace Baskar as the new captain?

S: Sorry, I don't have any reason to answer that. Not being rude but it's a surprise. Just wait like the rest and know who is going to be the successor. We would be having an interim captain to lead till World Cup Ninety-one's start. After that we would be having the real captain of the National team.

Suddenly, Bechun Butea enters the room and moves towards the table where the interview is happening.

B: I'm sorry for interrupting, but it's the time for practice. Could you please pardon us?

S: *shows a thumbs up* Yeah, sorry we could continue this at the Tea Break. Shall we? I have the session to attend.

G: Yeah that's fine, let's get things for the game sorted out first.

Butea and Newman leaves for the practice and Gabriel takes his laptop to watch some cartoons.

CARTOONS?! WHAT?!

To be continued...

[Kimi-Suomi]

We knew that our luck would run out one day, and these next 2 games were expected to be that fall...but how we fought in these two games would certainly be remembered for all time.

Up first was Hapilopper in their backyard, Capital Stadium itself. Thom Perkins may be the main man in charge, but the main focus was on his assistant and starting defender Nathan Ellis and his email of...interesting content. These tactics were all about the "shits and giggles" but when it came to playing this game, it would be the Haps who got the last laugh. Their style of "palloja seinälle" certainly shocked Esko Laaksonen's side and Kauko Loukamaa could do little to nothing to stop Peter Robson and Toby Bryson from getting 3 between them in the first 45. All was essentially lost from there, but the fightback to 3-2 had to be commended with both Anne Hintz and Teemu Räikkönen providing some joy to the visiting fans who did turn up to this one. In the end, many things happened: Nate Ellis was smug whilst shaking our hands, Ernie Stevenson looked like he lost a bet or something and he was certainly confused when our Eternal Guest finally introduced himself to the Hap Coaching Staff during the end of game pleasantries: "Sorry I didn't intro myself before, I was kinda excited for this one. I'm Daniel Marx, by the way." Some people on the socials knew who he was, but would THEY know? Would Ernie know someone from his brother's sport? Someone who hadn't been seen for a long while?

While those questions were asked, we still had to return to Pesä to play the 2nd toughest opponent in the group in the form of Tikariot. Hosting one of the top teams in the world is always going to be a tough ask, especially for a nation ranked in the top 150, but the fans here in Kimi Kaupunki was always going to be very supportive and Stuart Ekstrom's side would certainly face a tougher challenge than they maybe would've anticipated. Adrian Grimaud was the main scoring threat in this contest early on and found the net in the 34th, but Valtteri Nordström would get one back in the 42nd to restore some sort of hope back within our ranks. Grimaud was not letting that go however and his brace-clincher in the 56th and from here, Tikariot's defence clamped us down. Things were looking about right at that point and the 3 points seemed to be going to the correct place...but on 90+2, in the dying embers, Heidi Itälä found the head of Maria Tuominen and she would head it in past Brian Merson to send the roof off the joint. Kimin Armeija had managed to take a point off the Pot 2 team and now, our 6 points overall don't look too bad after all.

Our final 2 games in the first half aren't going to be easy at all as we look to play the current Top 2: 2nd-placed Abanhfleft on the road (with a visit to Gil Archer on the cards) and undefeated Audioslavia in Pesä. Both those games will be absolutely tough, but Kimi-Suomi is starting to develop a mindset of "no step back", "ei askelta taaksepäin", and that could play a part here. Let's see if we can get any points from this brutal first half climax. NOSTA KUIN HUUHKAJAT!

[Cassadaigua]

Pierce’s Role And Top Male Players In Cassadaigua,
By Chelsea Dufresne, Concord Heights Times

With Zack Pierce being named the Head of Men’s Soccer Development in the country, the first time this position has ever been held within CASE, there are new expectations that we will see more male players on the national team. It is a path that we appeared to be on, but one that seemed to hit a roadblock all of the sudden. I put out a fan poll out there, and asked fans to objectively name who they thought were the best male players in Cassadaigua right now, that are of Cassadagan descent. Before I get to that list of people, it was interesting to note that there are no Cassadagan males on teams such as Concord Heights City, Brattleboro FC, Victoriaville South End or New Lakeland SC. That’s not to say they don’t have male players. After all, Julio Campana won the Golden Boot with New Lakeland, as you have heard me talk about several times now. Eli Mathers plays a critical role in the midfield of Victoriaville South End, and Alessio Roda is an important part of the Concord Heights City midfield. You go to the games of these teams, and you will see young boys wearing the kits of these players, so there are males out there serving as role models. Maybe this is why we haven’t realized how much of a problem this was starting to become again, because in terms of the percentage of males playing on Cassadagan soccer teams, it is a number that has never been higher. The problem is that they are not Cassadagan males.

Preston Treadwell, a forward for Rutland Dockside, was the most commonly mentioned player, and statistically, there is nothing wrong with his production. Treadwell scored 19 goals last season, playing 45 out of 46 games for the team, and was second on the team in scoring. Only Lauren Schindler, who had 21 goals, put more in the back of the net. According to “The Dock-trine”, a popular sports blog of Rutland Dockside, “Preston Treadwell is an important part of this team. Sometimes, you think that in order for Dockside to become a greater threat for a CSL title, they would have to move on from him, but I think he works really well here and I hope he stays here for the long haul.” Treadwell is 26, and when I asked him for a response to being mentioned as one of the top Cassadagan born males in the country according to a fan poll, he told me, “That’s pretty cool. I haven’t thought about it a lot because we have so many great guys who have come over from other places and I am really just interested in going out there and doing my job and helping Dockside win games. But if people are looking up to me, that I think that is a pretty good honor. It makes me feel good to hear that.” While Treadwell is a good player for a club that went 21-8-17, finishing 12th on the table of 24 teams, he’s not a name anywhere near the radar of being on the national team.

Another commonly mentioned name was Tyler Reynolds, the midfielder who did make the roster of the World Cup 87 team when he was 21, but has since not been considered for the team. He now plays for Starksville Coastal, and many believe the reason that his name has not been heard from much anymore when it comes to the national team is the struggles of Coastal itself. They were awful two seasons ago, going only 9-8-29, finishing 20th, and unbelievably for a team of their stature, were only ten points above relegation. They were better last season, but still not great, finishing 18-12-16, and 14th on the table. Reynolds did not fare well two years ago, scoring only seven goals in 37 games (missing nine to injury). That improved last year to thirteen goals in 42 games, still not a number that is going to get consideration for the national team. Coastie’s Club, the Starksville Coastal fan blog says, “If you see the declining goal totals of Tyler Reynolds and wonder if perhaps he is doing other things to help the club, the answer is no. He is really the weak link of the midfield. So, whatever happened to this once highly touted player that once played for the national team? I can’t explain it in any other way than he got his big contract and lost motivation. It happens in sports, and it has happened to Tyler Reynolds. I don’t actually understand why some people even still wonder about him, it’s obvious he’s not the player we hoped he would be. Not everyone pans out.”

Chelsea Blake, the manager of Rutland FC, and a former World Cup starting defender, has her own theory, “Don’t kill the messenger, but I don’t think we have scouted a Cassadagan male for addition to our roster in a couple years now. The big reason for that, in my opinion, is that we have so many men in the league that we don’t even know it is a problem right now. But the big thing is the transfer window itself. We’ve had to use it several times, either you’re looking at what you have available within Cassadaigua, and that’s mainly women, or you are looking at the international window. On that, you’re evaluating male and female players, and admittedly maybe looking at the women a little more because you think that they will be quicker to agree to the transfer to come to Cassadaigua than a male player will be, but I look at the men as well. So, in conclusion, you have three groups of people that are looked at ahead of Cassadagan men, so we end up in the position that we are currently in.” Blake says that it will be a while before that changes, “We are just getting started, as a league, with aggressively looking at the international transfer window and that is going to continue. I like what CASE is going to try and do so we can get more Cassadagan men out there and on the national team, but that is going to take time. I will help the matter however I can. Zack Pierce is free to contact me, he already knows my number.”

Zack Pierce grew up in the small town of Easterly, with a population of only 4,119 and existing 80 miles east of Starksville. “It’s a very nice town close enough to the coast to travel there easily but far enough away from it to not get the coastal tourists if you have never been there,” Pierce told me, “it’s kind of rural, but mostly just people who are far enough away from the big city life to do their own thing.” Pierce played multiple sports as a kid, and there was never anything weird about being a boy on the team, but he says that might have been a product of the small town, “You didn’t have a lot of people joining these leagues to where you were going to be looked at weird because you were a boy. The coaches just took whatever they could get.” Zack said that his favorite sport was gridiron, and he actually loved playing linebacker, but knew that he was best at soccer, so he chose that path. We’re grateful he did, as he starred on his high school team, and it was at that point where he was starting to be seen nationally not as much for his on the field talent, but because he was a boy with that talent. “High school, yeah, that’s when it started coming up but I have to be honest, on the pitch I never heard anything about it from the other players. We just played the game. All my teammates were girls, and most of the people I played against were girls, and there wasn’t much that was unusual about that. The girls knew that I was the best person on the field, I can say that now but I was not arrogant then, and they were happy to see me succeed if I was on their team, or respected me if I was not. It was really the people in the media that made it seem weird for me to be doing what I was doing.”

From there, Zack went on to play in the Di Bradini Cup, and most notably on the World Cup teams. “On the World Cup team, everyone knew who I was, so there was nothing unusual about it. We had people on the team who wanted me to succeed because I was man more than I wanted myself to succeed. That says a lot for the tight locker room that we had back then.” Pierce also mentioned that he made small talk with players on the other teams about it, and they all seemed to respect him as well. “I always saw myself as fortunate. I had an equal opportunity to succeed, but I grew up in a small, almost rural town. If I grew up in a big city or a large suburban district, would I be here today? Would I have had the same opportunities? I am not sure, because if nothing else I probably would have chosen to play gridiron, and I would never have been able to play that professionally. That is why this position is important to me, because we need to make sure that men have the same chances that I do. And then I say getting the same chance, I don’t just mean that a team exists. I mean that the team exists with the full funding, and full amount of coaching support as any other program out there for girls.”

Don’t expect immediate success, but this is not supposed to be about that. It is about development, and that will begin at the youth level and through the school level and eventually the newly formed academies. It will likely be a few World Cups before this program shows any kind of reward, so maybe we will have a couple more World Cups with having an all-female roster until the next Zack Pierce or Preston Newfeld comes along.


Game Briefs: (For detailed comprehensive coverage of each game, check our website)

MD4: Cassadaigua 0, Electrum 0

While all of the games during qualifying will be big due to the strength of the group, this one, on paper, was one of the biggest. Playing Electrum, the pot two team at home would be an important game to win. Unfortunately, the Fillies were unable to do that, as they were unable to put one past Ralph Mills. Each of the keepers, Mills and Cynthia Kerr were the highlights of this game, as well as the defense that was in front of them. Not a while lot to talk about this one, but clearly it is the Electrumites that will be happier with this draw.

Byers used the regular lineup for this game, and said afterwards, “Electrum played a perfect road game. They came in here and got a point, and in their situation that is what you want to do, at the minimum. We got some chances, so did they. We’ll talk about the things I feel we need to work on privately in the locker room.” Like usual, there is a lot of game within a game stuff that happens in a scoreless draw, and you can see that discussed on our website.


MD5: Cassadaigua 3, Polkopia 3

From not scoring any goals to playing a game that had a total of six. This was a tough assignment for the Fillies, leaving some to wonder why Brittany Byers would start Katie Schnapper in goal instead of Cynthia Kerr. Brittany was quick to explain why, “At no point did I say that we were going to have one keeper that plays 90% of the games. Both Cynthia and Katie are going to get plenty of starts during qualifying. Katie has World Cup experience, and if you thought that when I said Katie would get plenty of games that I was only give her games that are perceived to be easier on paper, then you made the wrong assumption.” Still, if you wanted to criticize the decision, it seemed to be fair game since Kerr was coming off a clean sheet against Electrum and Polkopia is the pot three team.

The Gold & Black got off to the 1-0 lead, thanks to a goal by Yuri Smyefinov, who snuck through the defense when the Fillies may have been more focused on the primary forwards. Summer Speers was the one that seemed to be caught flat-footed to this play. It was a great set up, and Smyefinov delivered in the 11th minute. Things would worse for Cassadaigua before they got better when Yakoby Kosyo showed off the individual skill that makes him so special in the 29th minute. Schnapper over-reacted to his initial move before shooting, and paid the price. Allison Rice’s first of qualifying got the Fillies one back in the 36th.

In the second half, things did not get better for Team Cassadaigua, with Stepen Azarov making a great play along the wing, set up nicely by Smyefinov, and it was 3-1 in favor of the home side in the 56th. If you looked at Cassadaigua’s effort up to that point, you may have wondered if you ever called Jenna Frontiera’s name, but that was a product of the great defensive play preventing her from getting great chances. And if Jenna can’t go, Bayley Stanton is probably not going to be as effective. This is a game where the Fillies really missed Meghan Wolcott, but she would have made things happen with Morgan Rosenblatt in the middle of field so the defense could not spend so much energy in marking Frontiera.

Time ticked away, and you could see some frustrated faces on the field for Cassadaigua, and in the 72nd minute, Byers substituted off Frontiera and Stanton to go with the two youngsters, Rachel Boldin and Chloe Anderson. Tara Kriedel was entered into the game to replace Danielle Porter. This meant Polkopia needed to make adjustments to their strategy of being aggressive with Frontiera, and it seemed to work for Cassadaigua. Rosenblatt would get more aggressive too, and that would result in her setting up Chloe Anderson in the 79th minute to get one back, the first goal at this level for Anderson. It seemed like it would not matter for the eventual result, but in the first minute of injury time off a perfectly delivered corner from Kriedel, Boldin scored her second of goal of qualifying to stun this crowd a bit and win a potentially critical point for the Fillies.

For more, check our website.

[Tumbra]

Tumbra 2-1 Flavovespia

TMB (4-2-3-1): 1 - Lennon; 2 - Hughes, 4 - Henderson (14 - Kerr, 70'), 26 - Perry, 3 - Harris (27 - Sheppard, 45'); 6 - Hicks (23 - Fisher, 74'), 15 - Harrison, 10 - Cole; 7 - Hilton, 9 - Vaughn, 11 - Riordan

TMB scorers: Robin Vaughn (19'), Raymond Perry (81')

Player of the Match: Raymond Perry (TMB)

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The 14 Stars 3-4 Tumbra

TMB (4-2-3-1): 1 - Lennon; 34 - Moss (2 - Hughes, 81'), 4 - Henderson, 14 - Kerr, 27 - Sheppard (3 - Harris, 74'); 6 - Hicks - inj (15 - Harrison, 45'), 8 - McGrath, 10 - Cole; 7 - Hilton, 9 - Vaughn, 11 - Riordan

TMB scorers: Nick Riordan (3', 71'), George Hilton (11'), Vincent Hicks (34')

Player of the Match: Maximilian Flare (TFS)

Link to arc home
defender meets midfielder: season 5, part 4
life together

i. hedgehog's dilemma

As unwieldy and as uncomfortable as the arrangement may have seemed for Trudy, they'd soon settled into a natural — if slightly awkward — rhythm. They'd learned to live with each other, Trudy becoming a bit comfortable with leaning on Stephen for help around the house, while Stephen got used to, well, having someone else in his private space. The heavy conversation about what had gone on near the tail end of last season still hadn't occurred — Trudy suspected Stephen was doing everything possible to stay away from broaching that topic. Both of them were seemingly content with the fragile, transparent walls they'd built up to guard themselves against hurting each other more.

The walls may have been transparent, they may have been fragile, but they were still walls. And when one of them tried to break some of the walls down — Stephen trying to engage in casual conversation during dinner, or Trudy asking Stephen to watch television together — the other would put up more walls in kind. Trudy would respond with short, noncommital answers at the dinner table. Stephen would sit on the sofa and watch, but sit a fair distance away from Trudy, and typically only for a while before leaving.

It was equally frustrating for both of them. Even when both of them went out on the rare occasions that they did — to buy food, or go jogging together, or just to chill — there was nothing. The spark had gone. Stephen would retire to his room extremely early in the night — he'd told Trudy that the house was free for her to use, and that he'd keep himself to the bathroom in his own room — leaving Trudy with nothing to do except stare out into the bright lights of Chromia, until she decided that she was bored enough to go to sleep. The season was starting soon, and somehow things felt worse than how she'd envisaged them being. If anything she'd preferred when Stephen still treated her as a team-mate and was somewhat distant, but still professional enough to not stir any suspicions from the rest of the squad. This?

Eh...

She'd talked to Leysa for a bit about this, but she ended up being just as puzzled as Trudy about Stephen's behaviour. Trudy had conveniently omitted what she'd done — stirring up a bit of guilt within herself, but why should she put in effort if he wasn't — but Leysa told her to keep trying to break through; and if it didn't work out, there was always the option of moving out during the season. Nobody was keeping her at Stephen's house; the only thing preventing her from leaving was herself. Lynne was more direct; she should go. She also brought up the concept of the hedgehog's dilemma; evidently inspired by some Kandorese animated television show that on the surface seemed to be about piloting giant robots, but somehow ended up being about the state of the human psyche and depression. Either way, it didn't really seem applicable to her situation; a group of hedgehogs wanting to be closer to each other but their spines ended up hurting each other when they moved close. In the end, they'd kept themselves at a distance, close enough such that they'd be able to share warmth but not too close that their spines would prick each other. It was all very abstract, but Lynne insisted that Stephen and Trudy's situation was somewhat close to that; but Trudy just couldn't see it. So Lynne just went back to telling her to move out.

Deep down, however, Trudy knew that if she decided to move out, it was game over for her and Stephen. There was no coming back from this nadir if either of them — well, it really was up to her, since Stephen had made very clear she was welcome to stay, and he'd never kick her out — decided to throw in the towel. And despite, on the night before the first training session of the season, her instincts telling her to just say "fuck it," leave Stephen behind and move into a small apartment in Chromia where she would be alone, but with the only person who truly understood herself, she decided to stay.

ii. feelings (reprise)

Stephen didn't know why he'd accepted the request from Trudy. It was objectively the right thing to do — a friend needed a home to stay, and he'd offered up his home — but emotionally it'd sent him into another spiral. Here she was, the girl he loved but was forcing himself to not love, staying in his house, and being in his life far more than she'd ever been before. Even after Zeta Reka, during the lull in which he'd shown her around Straton. Even after his first time visiting Chromatika. Even after he'd moved here.

But it'd been a while since she'd moved in, and Stephen felt like they were going nowhere. Deep down, he knew this was his fault. He was, after all, the one who'd withdrawn from her, afraid of accidentally blurting out his feelings to her or harming whatever they'd had up to their point, and sending their friendship into the spiral that resulted in what they had today. Yes, she relied on him to do pretty much everything around the house — the one time she'd tried to do the laundry when he was out, he returned home to a washing machine overfilling with soap suds — but she still tried to do everything by herself. The result was the two of them basically living parallel lives in the same apartment, which was deeply torturous for Stephen.

He'd sorted out his feelings for her, properly, this time, and yes — finally, he knew that he was in love with the girl who'd bounded into his life, made him pay for a waffle, began the chain of events that led to gender equality in the Tumbran league, appeared in the World Cup 88 opening ceremony, ate bibimbap with him on a train, basically convinced him to become team-mates with her. He knew. There was no longer any stammering, or any palpitations, or any sweating, or any ghosting. All he felt was calm.

As Nigel had said so long ago, that probably meant he'd finally sorted out his feelings. Now he needed to find out what she felt towards him. But that was difficult. Even though they lived under one roof.

He'd talked to Ami, and they'd both come to the conclusion that, yes, Trudy was very much a lone wolf and that she was very much keen on doing things by herself, and that it was difficult for her to get in touch for her feelings. Stephen didn't know how to help, however, just hovering around the house, the awkwardness becoming too much for him too bear. He'd talk to her during dinner, but she'd always responded with responses that killed the conversation; and when she invited him to watch television, the two simply watched in silence until one of them — typically, always him — couldn't bear it anymore and retreated to the safety of his own room. Surely, when the season began, things would get better; they'd have more to talk about.

If they didn't...well, then perhaps whatever they had was at an end.

iii. circles

"Haven't you got training tomorrow? I mean, what happened to my advice to get a full nights' worth of rest before training?"

There was no response from the hoodie-clad teenager, bar a sniffle.

"Really not feeling it, huh?"

"No," came the croaking reply.

Leysa Burns of Wirr Tsi smiled comfortingly, and Trudy Harrison looked back up at her, leaning her head onto the older woman's shoulder. She could sense Trudy was tired, and needed someone urgently; and that was the reason why she'd made the drive down from Wirr Tsi down this late at night. She could tell that her ex-mentee needed her emotional support right now, and even though they were on teams that would be directly competing for the title, that didn't let her need to look out for Trudy get in the way.

"Why's he gotta be like this?"

"We both know why, Trudy," she whispered, putting her arm around the teen and soothingly rubbing it, trying to comfort her. "He shied away because he liked you. Lots of people do that."

"I still don't know why."

"Why what?

"Why he didn't just tell me."

"How would you have responded, back then, if he'd told you that he liked you as more than a friend?"

"I don't know, Leys..."

"See? That's reason enough for him not to have done it. Unless he was absolutely sure you would've said that you felt the same way, he wouldn't have said anything. He'd have kept it holed up, holed inside him, until it went away. Him staying away from you was by design; he probably wanted his feelings to go away, because you two, first and foremost, are team-mates. And professional footballers."

"But that's already happened."

"How do you know for certain?"

"If what you're saying is true, he wouldn't have let me stay at his place."

"That's because he saw you as someone who needed help, not as an object of love, or whatever. His need to see you under a roof, even if it was his, outstripped his desire to keep you as far away as possible. You were someone who needed help. He was merely offering it."

"But why would he?"

"Because, deep down, no matter what he might say, he still loves you."

"Really?"

"You're not making it easy for him to tell you that he does, though," Leysa said with a knowing smile on her face. "Don't think I don't know you've been stonewalling him, too. You're making him run around in circles. He's going to give up one day, you know."

The two sat in silence for a while, looking at the twinkling Chromia skyline from their place of relative silence on the park atop a hill, the whoosh of the cars below on the expressway punctuating the silence.

"Why do you build up these walls, Trudy?"

"I don't want to get hurt."

"You can't trust the person who's been by your side for the best part of four years?"

"I did. It's why I'm here, now."

"I've made my case for him."

"Well..."

"...you don't know how you feel towards him either, don't you?"

"...No."

iv. just friends

Red League Season 8, Matchday 9: Chromatik vs Wirr Tsi

"And there it is, the final whistle blows — and Chromatik have triumphed over the Shock, one goal to nil, to cap off the defending champions' horrible start to the season. A far cry from where they were, with as many losses now as they did last season — three, for those keeping track — while Chromatik have only fallen once. It's Cixin Ngyuen's strike that separates the two..."

A dream start to the season for the Capitalizt, with eight wins and just four dropped points to occupy pride of place atop the Red League table. For Stephen Kerr, the plaudits had been coming in; none more so than today, when his defensive performance against Chromatik had denied Artem Kohut a single chance on goal, his performance giving them a clean sheet.

He didn't know what happened that night when Trudy decided to leave the house after dinner, and returned very, very late at night, but all he'd known since then was that she'd been considerably friendlier to him. They'd been going out again, doing the groceries together — and she'd even tried her hand at cooking. Granted, the food wasn't that good, but it was still worth something. They were healing.

They hadn't told anyone in the squad they'd moved in together — Ami had been sworn to secrecy — but someone had to notice soon. Stephen was ferrying Trudy to and from Chromatik's headquarters, and the excuse that they were carpooling would only go so long. Eventually, the penny would drop; but Stephen would have preferred it to be anyone but Raul, the combative right-back, to unearth the news and let him know.

"Stephen. Can I get a bit of your time?"

"Mm-hm, yeah, Raul, what's up?"

"Listen," he said, leaning in. "I know, I know, you're young and you're looking for love. But don't you think it's a bit too close to the heart of the club to move in with a team-mate?"

"Uh...what?"

"Really? Trudy moved to your place at the start of the season, didn't she?"

"How did you know?"

"Well...it's not that hard to guess."

"Sure, Raul. What're you getting at?"

"I know I gave you a bit of a hard time when you first moved in. I know now, you're not that kid, and you're entitled to have your own relationships. You wanna date a team-mate, sure. But, please. Don't let your relationship get in the way of our title challenge. Alright? You heard the story of Gabriella Antonio? Moved to Nephara, fell in love, got pregnant midway through the season, had to retire."

"I don't know what you're talking about, Raul. Trudy and I aren't in the kind of relationship you're thinking of. She just lives with me because she needs a place to stay. That's it. We're just friends, just team-mates. Nothing more."

"If you say so, Stephen. But...keep my words in mind."

A wave of emotions ran through Stephen's mind as he turned and exited the mens' changing room. How did Raul get to know? And if he knew, how many more of the squad knew? Did this mean that Jannick knew? Did everyone who knew just operate on the assumption that the two of them were in a relationship? And —

Turning one corner, he found himself staring into the bright blue eyes of Trudy Harrison, with a look of disappointment on her face. Was it disappointment? Resignation? Something else entirely? His eyes widened as he tried to figure out what to say. Had she heard the conversation between Stephen and Raul? The walls of the Capitalizt Dome's men's changing room were somehow notoriously thin.

Before he could say anything, however, she gave him a half smile and excused herself to head to the women's changing room further down the corridor.

v. i fell in love with you one night in...

Once again, she was lying awake.

Once again, she didn't know how she felt.

She knew what Leysa had said. She knew, that no matter what, that Stephen loved her. It was obvious the moment she'd been told, really; the twinkle in his eye had come back, the moments of genuine happiness they shared together. Running. Doing the groceries. Their car rides to and from the Chromatik training rounds. She now knew that he was in love with her, but did she feel the same way?

The waffle. The rooftop. The comforting when she'd frozen in front of the media. The guidance he'd given to her. The time they'd spent in Straton. Their first hug, when she broke the news that she was going to Chromatika. The time they spent together in Z'ai'ai, the time spent looking into each other's eyes for that stupid photograph. The message to Lynne, when she finally allowed herself to say what had been on her mind for a long time, but hadn't dared to say. That he was the first person she could ever see herself with.

But hearing Stephen say that he wasn't in love with her still made her feel a pang of...jealousy? Sadness? She'd heard everything, really; when Raul first mentioned her name while she was outside, she knew immediately that something was going to be said. She knew, of course, that Stephen wouldn't dare say that he liked her that way.

But hearing him say that they were just friends still stung. And she didn't know why it did. Was she angry at him for denying it? Was she sad, having to hear him deny it despite obviously not telling the truth?

Or was the pull on her stomach triggered by those two words caused by...something else? Feelings that she didn't want to acknowledge, but existed? The solution, of course, was blindingly obvious to her, but she tried her best to test everything else out. Maybe she just wanted to be friends. No, otherwise she wouldn't have felt that way when he said those words. Maybe she was just pissed at him for lying. But that would mean that she'd wanted him to say the truth, but why? Unless...

Maybe she was in love with him, too.

Tumbran Squad for Matches vs South Covello and @ Quakmybush

Goalkeepers: 1 - John Lennon [Lakewood City], 12 - Nick Barker [FC Inter Nantwich], 13 - Frank Johnson [Abingdon Celtic, TLI]
Defenders: 2 - Ryan Hughes [Lakewood City], 3 - Nigel Harris [Lakewood United] 4 - Ian Ashburn [Lakewood City], 14 - Stephen Kerr [Chromatik, CMT], 18 - Neal Diamond [Lanar, CMT], 32 - Ben Morgan [West Couno United], 35 - Neil Crozier [Bul Khungur Miners, TKT] 36 - Albert Legget [Stonehouse Athletic, TLI]
Midfielders: 6 - Vincent Hicks [FK Metropola Borograd, STL], 10 - Phil Cole [Osarese Marcadia, AUD], 15 - Trudy Harrison [Chromatik, CMT], 16 - Alan Morgan [Lakewood City], 28 - David Burnet [Columbia City], 37 - Nicky Atkinson [Lakewood United]
Wingers: 9 - Robin Vaughn [Lakewood City], 17 - Neil Fraser [Lakewood City], 21 - Lynne Crossley [Strathcona Internationals, KSK], 30 - Valerie Wells [Swanguard Athletic, QUE]
Strikers: 22 - Nigel Erskine [Anomalies, CMT], 33 - Bruce Nolan [Couno Rangers]

[Mertagne]

Neorudo CopLimy Stadium, Mertagne

The atmosphere in the boardroom was tense. Especially because, as the thirty-two members of the Mertagne National team slid in, some fresh out of a taxi at what would be considered an early morning meeting ot even the best of larks, there wasn't a single seat to sit on. Or a table to rest your elbows. No, instead, as the players shuffled to stand next to each other on thirty-two circles that had been marked on the floor with electrical tape, a spiky number hashed within, all they could see was an ominously large and ominously off television screen on the wall opposite, and several footballs lined up with the same electrical tape outlines on the jazzy, hair-and-vomit obscuring carpet.

The screen crackled into life after an amount of time that was slightly too short to be considered an awkward amount, but far too long to be comfortable. On the screen, a cheap VHS repeated over what looked to be a shot of a small room in a warehouse. On it was a chalk outline surrounding a body, with a pool of darkened blood beginning to congeal on the floor.

A smash cut to a heavily breathing masked face. An off key, discordant piano tone blares from the speakers beside the television, as the face begins to speak with a raspy voice, before cutting back to the warehouse murder-scene.

"Your actions have caused this. This is not my first victim, and it will not be my last. For every goal you concede, every shot you miss, every time you fumble the f-ing bag so badly, I. Will. Kill. Again."

A staticy fizzle and the scene continues, with one key difference. The body is missing. A pause hits the air for a few seconds, before the masked face reveals itself on screen once more.

"Many of you play for Mertagnian football teams. You may be allowed to live in the MULTILeague, but here in the World Cup I hold you to more... discerning standards. Those of you who play abroad should be ashamed. Particularly you, Maurauri and Restault. Your commutes got cut in half last year and we haven't seen any discernable improvement."

The scene changes to a mid-shot of the figure, who is wearing a black shirt, a strange, bloody lab coat, and football boots. With a suspiciously clean sledgehammer mounted across their shoulders, they continue.

"As I previously mentioned, this was not my first victim, nor will it be my last. I have gathered you in this room for one reason and one reason only, -"

The video cuts out and the wood inlaid hidden-ish door to the right of the screen opens up. Out of it, a dashingly smaller-than-life masked figure matching the description of that in the video emerges, sneering with a cape, and begins to bat the footballs lying in front of them at Mertagne's football players with both the sledgehammer and their feet.

"FOUR FOUR AGAINST REÇUEÇN!"

"THREE FIVE AGAINST ELECTRUM!"

"NIL NIL AGAINST GUANACASTECA, AT HOME!"

"ONE FOUR AGAINST SCHIMA FLIPPING BAS!"

The masked figure stopped its barrage, before taking its mask off to reveal the sweaty face of Kristie Ettrick.

"And to top it all off. To finish the meal of shit sandwiches I and every Mertagnian fan has had to endure at the hands and feet of you lot..."

She swung the sledgehammer into the television screen, shattering the glass and leaving it embedded in the electronics and wall that it had impacted.

Ettrick spoke much more calmly than before. "One-three against a team just called 'Acceptably Normal'. You know that makes you worse than normal? What even happened there? I wasn't even at that one, I thought you had it in the bag that much!"

"Ah, if I may, gaffer," spoke a definitely scared Donna Eclis, who stood alongside a Pia Aziz that looked unfazed, as she was used to Ettrick's more creative outbursts. "there was a bit of a problem with that game. Nobody had told the groundskeepers at the New Brazier stadium that were coming to that one. They were in the middle of resodding it. We had to play in the mud, and the goal-line technology was definitely on the fritz. I think ball-tracking chips had been installed in the boots of the defenders instead of, like, in the ball?"

"And they let it stand?" Ettrick replied, with a steely stare.

Euklades Hemingway raised a weary hand. "The referee was Kruviši, and they said they'd seen worse pitches on the regular lower in the SFP."

"Where's a Kruviši when they're at home?" asked Kristie.

"Farfadillis, gaffer." piped up resident geography expert Tyson Oughtio. "Kruviš is one of the jungly bits. It gets quite hot there. He probably has seen worse, to be honest."

"Oh, great. Well, I'll be sure to watch out for that ref in the future. I'll see if I can at least grease some wheels and get him out of reffing our future games. No point appealing a result like that - WCC bureaucracy is like pulling teeth, and we'd only get the result changed by the time we'd had a hundred more cups. What was his name?"

"Nebojša Mugoša, I'm fairly sure." Hemingway replied.

"Great. So, you've delayed for long enough, all of you." Ettrick sighed, while removing the faux blood-stained lab coat and dropping it on the floor alongside the mask. "Ignore the mud. We've floundered as a team on and off the pitch this qualifying. What's up with that? Is it that you don't like me? Because, if it is, then that's not an excuse, because I coached a team of schoolkids once that hated me, and they did alright! They definitely won their local inter-school tournament."

The team sort of stood there, looking rather dour.

Ettrick looked up with a twinge of sadness on her face. "Oh, don't say that. We've had good times. Like that time we all went out to dinner on that boat that was docked up at Keers. I've never seen someone eat so much cheese!" she gestured at Leo Lezarraga. "You can stop standing around like bowling pins now, and come and join me around the middle."

The team slowly scattered into a three-quarter circle around the assistant manager.

"I genuinely believe that we can succeed here. Perhaps I'm just not gelling with your style, which in my opinion has been a bit rigid these past few tournaments. I wasn't brought in here to stick to the status quo, though. So how about we meet in the middle little and really pull together coming up to the halfway mark? Don't tell me your fire has gone, because I saw you, Fostin, having a bit of an airy-sweary match with that defender from Schima Bas a few weeks ago."

Fostin Feu pointed sarcastically at himself. "Me? Sweary? Perish the thought, folks..."

The squad laughed, before Luka Hazaluta spoke up. "I think we've just been in a bit of a slump recently, that's all. Perhaps this is the kind of wakeup call we all need. It's not that we don't like you, Kristie, we do actually. You're a bit of a breath of fresh air, to be honest, and I'm not sure that's something that the great hulk that the FMF is has had for a while. I just don't think we're used to someone under the age of fifty managing us!"

Kristie smiled. "That's the spirit. And if this isn't the wake up call you need, then you'll hopefully get woken up by the fact that it's going to be you lot that'll be paying the damages for that over there." she pointed back towards the television via a thumb over her right shoulder.

"Anyway, should we go and talk tactics? I think there's a briefing room over the hall we can use..."

[Southwest Eastnorth]

Paulette Collins never thought she'd see this day. If she ever had a dream of busting open a worldwide sporting conspiracy, she surely thought it would be when she was older than 34. Paulette was of course a writer for the Virginia Gazette, one of the many newspapers plying its trade both in paper and digital forms. Paulette had garner a decent amount of respect in the local and even the Rushmori areas for her writing and her general knowledge of sports. She had become a bit of a favorite with the sportsmen and sportswomen of SWEN, one of the first female writers who could say this.

Her boss was Rolf Conroy. Rolf was a portly 64 year old who had been int he business since he graduated college. His parents were ex-pat Tonissians who rand a large media conglomerate in (TBA) wildly known for publishing anti Tonissian dictatorship Op-Eds. It was easy to see why the Conroy family had moved abroad. Rolf's dad, Branson Conroy moved to SWEN a mere three years after the founding of Southwest Eastnorth and soon opened not only a media firm, but also a paper mill to manufacture the Newsprint needed for his news endeavor. 11 years later Rolf was born and 13 years brother, Mark Conroy was born. Rolf loved sports, thus with the combination of his families background and his passion of sports, he would eventually dig into a position at his fathers company as a sports writer. When the position for head sports editor at the Virginia Gazette came up, Rolf jumped at it. He took over the position and eventually his brother became his boss, when Mark Conroy took over Conroy Media Holdings.

Paulette and Rolf were together, having just found an insanely bizarre e-mail recieved from Chris Houton and Jayson Rox of the SWEN NT the pair began to investigate it more...

Rolf walked into the office, he knew that Paulette needed to get this story out so, needless to say they got themselves a copy of the e-mail.

"Paulette, did Jayson send you that e-mail?"

"Yes boss" Paulette replied in a precise and polite manor

"I want to you to check the file folder first, something seems up about that"

"Uh, boss, our computers have anti-virus on them right?"

"Yeah IT Updated it about a month ago"

"Ok then boss. If something bad happens, then you should be the one to explain to your brother why the entire computer system crashed thanks to a Hapilopper player"

"I will, but yanno, there's three things you don't debate me with. Sports, Cigars and whether or not you open that file extension."

"But boss, this the same Nate Ellis that went WAY out of his way to attack the Vdaran player a couple years ago....."

"Oh that guy?"

"Yes, THAT Nate Ellis."

"Well let's try it any way"

The pair opened the plans to see if anything was a foot. when they opened it they were shocked. It was a play book, but the whole thing had names of two Hapilopper domestic teams written all over it.

"It's a plant, a plant for some weird reason" a stuttering and shocked Paulette stated to her boss. "I'm gonna call Jayson and see what he dug up"

"Jayson, it's Paulette Collins from the VG, I need to talk with you about the Hapi-leaker incident."

"Yeah, hey did you see these plans"

"Yeah we just looked at them they are fake!"

"Fake, hell no! Nate wouldn't be that smart, this dude only gets smart when violence is involved"

"Well I think these are a plant Jayson"

"Can't be"

"I'd think about it Jayson...."

"you know what Paulette your job is writing and you know what,.........just call Nathan Ellis himself, whats the worst that can happen?"

Kandorith - 5
H. Fujiwara - 39' 88''
Y. Nakajima - 43' 73'
T. Honda - 59' (PK)


Southwest Eastnorth - 3
J. Roth - 21'
S. Bravaro - 50'
U. Barnett III - 90+1

Sendhang - 2
K. Samoi - 19'
G. Sing Nggawe 82'

Southwest Eastnorth - 2
S. Bravaro - 60' (PK)
J. Roth - 87'

[Pluvia and the Saxean Isles]

Before World Cup 90

Alfie Baker and Brandon Turner, starting centre midfielders for the Pluvia and the Saxean Isles national team, sat at a table together in the mess hall of the Magpies' principal training centre outside of Marienburg. Baker was tucking into his plate of marinated beef, potato dumplings, and red cabbage, while Turner opted for pasta dumplings filled with a mixture of smoked pork, spinach, breadcrumbs, and onions. Both of them were busy eating and not saying much when Laurent Chambéry and his translator appeared at Turner's elbow and asked to sit down.

"Sure thing, skip," replied Turner. "Are you finally getting used to Pluvian food?"

He glanced at Chambéry's plate, which had a small amount of beef, but somehow the Saviglianois had contrived to get brown rice instead of potatoes, and he sported a mixed-green and beet salad instead of cabbage.

"Ah, 'ou kno', eet eez deefeecult beecose zis far eenland, 'ou 'ave no feesh. Een my 'ome of Trinité, 'ou remember, we 'ad lots of good feesh and mussels and uzzer, erm, erm,"

"Seafood," his translator finished.

"Yes, seafood. Les fruits de mer, as we say. And I cannot zay zat I am a lover of potatoes, weech 'ou obviously are, Alfie. But I make do. Ze chef, she makes me rize and I always get zome greens as well. Zis beef, it is zimilar to a dish we 'ave in my 'ome country, except we make it wiz, erm, erm,"

"Tripe, stomach," said the translator.

"Yes, tripe of sheep. I must get ze chef to 'ave 'ou all try eet, becose there are many sheep 'ere, I understand?"

"Yes," said Baker. "On the Isles, I don't know if you remember, but we tried sheep stomach, so that's not too dissimilar, I suppose."

"Bah," said Chambéry. "Zat was heavy. Our dish is like zis beef, becose 'ou cook it long and slow and it melts in your mouth. But in any case, I do enjoy zis cidre 'ou 'ave 'ere, zo I mix it wiz mineral water. 'ou do not have light white or peenk wines like in my 'ome, it is all zweet, zo I enjoy ze crispness of your cidre. It makes a refreshing drink for lunch."

"Yeah, apple wine it's called here," said Turner. "My dad loves the stuff. He even planted a few apple trees in the yard just so he could grow and drink his own stuff. I think it's mostly dreadful, but he says it's improving all the time. Anyway, you mentioned one thing I wish we could have more of here inland, seafood. That seafood stew we had in Savigliane, it was great. Here, you only can get frozen fish and it's all cod or herring. Whenever I retire, I'm going to buy a place down in the Riverhold coast and just buy all the fresh fish and lobster I can."

"A man after my own 'art, 'ou are," said Chambéry with a smile.

Baker chuckled. "You're getting pretty good at the idioms, skip. 'Melt in your mouth', 'man after my own heart', pretty soon we'll have you cursing like a Kirkbridge dockworker."

"Aah, I zink I probably 'ave zome idea of what 'ou mean," said Chambéry. "My fazzer, 'e 'ad a few jobs, but one of zem was dockworker. Lift and strain every day. It's why I got into football, much less demanding."

"What do you mean, less demanding?" asked Turner. "That Roslina conditioning camp you put us through, I thought I was about to die, but you handled it well for, well, someone your age who's not a Pluvian or a Saxean."

"Ztrength and endurance are vital to a footballer's success, a team's success," said Chambéry. "I 'ope 'ou remember zat when we are 'osts to Soldera in a few days. Zey could easily defeat us if we are not properly prepared and in shape." He wagged his fork as he spoke, then suddenly stopped. "But listen to me talk and talk. What am I doing? I zhould follow your example and just eat. Zis meat looks delicious."

The men ate in silence, each feeling hopeful about the upcoming campaign; the team seemed to be jelling with itself and its new manager.

[Ranoria]

Krauts Earn Two Straight Wins To Dig Their Way Back From An Early Skid

Record: 2-1-2
-Goals F/A: 6/6
Record at Home: 1-1-1
-Goals F/A: 3/3
Record on Road: 1-1
-Goals F/A: 3/3

"Not the early results we were expecting," said manager Mark Tillman at a press conference last week, "We faced some tough opponents, but with the work we put in this offseason, we were expecting a little more. We've got a pivotal match coming up against TJUN-ia though, and our focus is there. If we go 0-3 in the first leg against Ethane, HUElavia, and TJUN-ia, we may have already dug our own grave.

The season's far from over though, we've got a ton of matches left to play. It has to turn around quickly, but I'm confident that this team can and will do just that."

You can say that again. The Krauts tied their first match at home against Darkmania, who are ranked just outside the top 100. In a group where Ranoria came in seen as a middle-of-the-pack finisher, not getting a win at home in that opener was a setback. Losing two straight to Ethane and HUElavia, who along with TJUN-ia are the favorites to earn the top two spots in the group, was devastating, especially with the latter coming at our own Smith Field. Fortunately, the squad finally showed up against TJUN-ia, an international boogeyman of ours.

Despite our history of being humbled by the various editions of the Jags, goalkeeper Vincent Emilia had one hell of a day, with two incredibly athletic blocks to keep the Jaguars off the scoreboard. The first came within the first ten minutes, at which point Emilia made a diving grab what looked to be a sure-fire score. On the second, Emilia played too aggressive, running up to meet Percy Pearson, who proceeded to kick the ball over his head and towards the goal. Fortunately for our star, the ball bounced high, giving him just enough time to get under it and bat it away.

Outside of that, Kris Reinhardt was pivotal, closing down passing lanes and forcing backwards passes all game long to shut down any momentum the previously unbeaten Jaguars got going. She's developed into a potential star in these last couple of World Cups - if she can help Ranoria to get into the proper, she just might take that next step.

Barry Chlorid managed to score near the end of the match, putting the ball in the opposite corner of the goal on a beautiful kick to take a lead that his team would never relinquish.

"Nice to get some wins under our belt," Chlorid admitted after the Krauts won their second straight contest against Aut-Ves-Nat, 2-1 at Smith Field. "We've had a winning record in each of the last two cups, and we're certainly hoping for a little bit more than that this time around, but if we kept going the way we were, even that was going to be out of reach."

It was surprising to see a squad that was - while no heavyweight at least - deemed respectable start out so slowly. The Krauts opened up going 0-1-2 after winning 20 matches in the last two qualifying stages. This is in spite of the hiring of Manlafi Sowe, former Herzegovina City FC goalkeeping coach and manager of Bunyoro RSC, both in Banija. Sowe's coaching was turning heads here in Ranoria as the team looked to be sharper than ever. Fortunately, with the squad having momentum now, we may just get to see the results of his coaching come to the forefront of the campaign.

Starting goalkeeper Vincent Emilia - who's been one of the best players in Ranoria for years now, certainly seems to be stepping up his game as a result of Sowe's presence. "He pointed out some tendencies I have that opponents can take advantage of, and we've worked on eliminating some of those vulnerabilities. Without that help, I don't getting the win against TJUN-ia."

Strong words from Emilia, who's long had Karsten Leonore fighting tooth and nail to take his spot, but he seems to be playing at as high a level as ever. And while he isn't one of the multitude of quality starters set to begin showing signs of their age within a year, he's clearly playing his heart out to help get this team over the hump and into the proper.

Next up, Ranoria will be taking on United Adaikes followed by United States of Great America, both winless squads in a group that's packed tight around the middle. With these two squads being (relatively) soft in comparison to the other teams lurking about group 15, these are must-win games for the Krauts to have a shot to pass up one of the top two teams and qualify for the first time in team history. Ranoria is currently 6^th in their group and on the outside looking in at a playoff berth, much less an outright qualification.

[Sarzonia]

The drive to the practice facility wasn't necessarily a big deal in Holly Cambrio's mind. By now, she'd made that drive on countless occasions. She had the route memorised and she could almost drive it blindfolded.

That thought was, of course, until she walked into the facility and saw the players in the dressing room.

"Holly!" forward Jake Campos asked. "Where were you yesterday? I texted you. Why weren't you at the café?"

"I forgot," she lied. She didn't forget, and Campos sensed exactly that as he studied the look in her eyes. She knew about the outing. She'd agreed to it. So why did she suddenly forget an outing the team had been talking about over the previous few days? Campos thought for a moment. He looked at her again and saw something in the look she gave back.

"Hey, you wanna talk in private?" he asked her.

"No," she shot back firmly.

"OK, I won't push it then," Campos said. He gave a look to her that didn't hide his disappointment that she didn't want to explain why she was a no-show at an outing she'd agreed to. If it had been a training session, she would have been there, and every player on the team knew that. At any mandatory team functions, Cambrio was there and was present. But Campos thought for a moment. Some of the mandatory functions that involved personal interaction, whether it was season ticket holders or donors to the national team or even among the wives, husbands, boyfriends, and others he'd noticed Cambrio looking like she'd rather be anywhere but there. It wasn't enough for him to say something and possibly shut her down from interacting with people she didn't know on a familiar basis, but it was something he'd thought about as he pondered what could have led her to be a no-show.

For her part, Cambrio had settled into lacing up her boots, as she'd already changed into her training gear for the upcoming match against Eastfield Lodge. She'd already had a conversation with manager Nathan Hanifer about things, about her role in the offence, about her combining up top with Campos, about the various other things footballers discuss with their managers. Hanifer wasn't a psychologist and he didn't pretend to be one. He looked at the row of photos of Sarzonian national team managers from Bryan Marshall to Dave Wilson to Brian Wilson to Franz Braddock to Bryan Ostrom to Kevin Connelly. He circled back to look at the photos of both Ostrom and Connelly. Ostrom, he'd remembered, committed suicide and forced Connelly into an unfamiliar role as a counselor of sorts.

And now, he was beginning to feel something wasn't right about Cambrio. It wasn't football-related. She was doing well in her role as a starting forward and her skillset was opening things up for Campos on the front line. She wasn't tiring on the pitch to require him to replace her except for defensive purposes late in matches. But there was something there that concerned him. He'd heard some of the players talking about Cambrio and the fact that she wasn't in attendance at the local café for a team outing. The managerial staff didn't attend because the purpose was as a team-building exercise for the players, but Cambrio being a no-show for a players-only outing was unusual.

He saw Cambrio as she was checking her phone with the practice session over and said, "Holly? Can I see you for a moment?"

"Sure, Coach," she said, following Hanifer into his office. After Hanifer shut the door to his office, he walked back to his desk and motioned for Cambrio to take a seat directly across from him.

"Holly," he began. "First of all, this has nothing to do with your footballing abilities. You're doing well on the pitch and in training. You've done everything we've asked of you so far."

"But," Cambrio said, knowing the shoe was going to drop.

"But," Hanifer said, "I'm aware you were a no-call, no-show at a team outing at the café," Hanifer said. "I'm not here to judge you on what you do away from the pitch or the training facilities. But I just wanted you to know a couple of your mates said privately they were worried about you and your welfare."

"Coach, I don't wanna talk about it," she said.

"You don't have to, Holly," Hanifer said. "I'm not trying to make you talk about something if you're not comfortable with it. But what I do want you to do is to let your mates know if you're not going to be somewhere you've agreed to be." He looked and saw uncertainty in Cambrio's eyes.

"I had a bad problem with anxiety before I started managing the Junior Stars," Hanifer said. He noted a look of surprise and a widening of Cambrio's eyes with a flash of recognition, but decided to continue his story even though he'd seemingly figured out what was wrong. "Like, I canceled a lot of shit at the last minute, I thought about EVERY single word I'd say in an interaction, all of that," he said. "I tried therapy. That didn't work for me. Meds didn't help. It took me a long time to find something that did work. Thankfully, I was able to find something. I hope you find that something that works for you." He offered a weak smile and a handshake.

Cambrio scored twice and assisted on a Campos goal in Sarzonia's 4-2 victory over Eastfield Lodge and netted a 48th minute tally against Eraman that was waved off by the TJUN-ian referee's assistant for being offside. It drew the ire of Hanifer to no avail and the Stars walked off the Dave Wilson Stadium pitch in Woodstock with a hard-luck 1-0 defeat to Eraman that left the Stars in fifth place, level in the Group 18 table with Mytanija for fourth place by points but trailing in goal difference with a minus-one to Mytanija's plus-two. They were less than halfway through World Cup 90 qualifying two points behind the aforementioned Eraman for a would-be position in the World Cup playoffs. They were also behind The Holy Empire by five points for the automatic berth in the proper.

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Zack Wilson had received the statement from The Holy Empire's team captain Shadow Whitmore in response to Hanifer's ejection of fans who hurled anti-religious epithets toward The Holy Empire during Sarzonia's 3-2 defeat at Dave Wilson Stadium.

"They thought it was regrettable?" Wilson exclaimed during a Zoom conference call with the Incorporated Football Federation Board of Governors, expressing surprise that was the word Whitmore used to describe Hanifer's decision to have the drunks expelled.

"What do you mean?" one Governor asked. "Hanifer was acting in accordance with our regulations and our policies whenever a bigoted statement is made."

"The fans filed suit in Court," another Governor said. "We'd best reserve public comments whilst there's potential litigation afoot."

"Their attorneys aren't privvy to this Zoom call," the Board's attorney said. "What's stated here is not part of any legal proceeding."

"Yes, but we can't really respond to Whitmore without that lawsuit in mind," another Governor replied.

"We have to say something," the first Governor finally said. "Even if it's just Hanifer following our procedures in accordance with Board regulations."

"I'll handle that part of it," Zack Wilson said. "I'll make clear to Mr. Whitmore that our fans are subject to a code of conduct, the fans involved violated that code of conduct and they were expelled in accordance with the consequences of their words and actions."

"We just received word that a magistrate judge has dismissed the lawsuit," Zack Wilson's attorney said as they entered the Zoom chat with the Board. "The judge ruled that Article VI doesn't apply."

"As we expected," the attorney for the board responded.

"However, their attorney has indicated an intent to appeal the ruling to Woodstock District Court."

"Good luck there," Wilson's attorney said. "I know the judge who's taking the case. She's going to agree with the magistrate."

"We going to run out the clock?"

"I don't think so. I don't know what's going to happen if it gets to the First Circuit or the High Appellate Court."

"I'm pretty sure they're going to follow standard precedent."

"Regardless, we still have work to do to come up with an appropriate response."

[Yue Zhou]

Varakoula, Tikariot

It had not been a good first day for Foreign Minister Zhen Qiang and his delegation. He'd brought the best and brightest of his underlings, but the fact of the matter was that the United Republics had very little bargaining power. It had been a great opportunity to bump elbows with some of Rushmore's most important diplomats, key networking in his quest to bring legitimacy to the new Yuezhou. But beyond that, Yue policy interests had been relatively marginalized by the power struggle between Banija and the Eura-Nephara axis, as well as Max Ulf's declaration of a referendum. This had roughly been what Zhen had expected to happen, and going into the conference he'd been fine with it. But with President Wu in the state that he was, and his National Union looking weaker than ever, Zhen was suddenly desperately in need of a win.

It was clear that the superpowers present weren't keen on Pavolan accountability, and token concessions on the front were unlikely to excite Yueren specifically - involving the CRC was just a Nepharan election with extra steps. Ulf's referendum wasn't something voters would care about - congrats, a bunch of white people a hundred miles away are voting on something - and while the Akongos' eventual exit seemed inevitable, it wouldn't happen soon enough to make an impact. In what was essentially a surrender with terms to Nafuna's backers, there seemed to be only one chip left on the table. It would be incredibly expensive and provide little political benefit - but what it did was send a message. So he had managed to leverage a relatively pleasant, if unfruitful, meeting with the Kabaka into a second meeting with an additional guest.

"Thank you again for meeting with me, Your Majesty," he said, standing and offering his hand as the Banijan delegation entered the room. The Banijan monarch accepted before sitting across from him. "I trust that your day is going well?"

"Could do with less spark from Mr. Rutherford, but it's going well enough."

Zhen nodded, in understanding. "I was told he was a technocrat."

"Yes, well, people change. Now, before he comes in, what do you want with him?"

"The situation seems untenable with respect to Malik. I don't think Nafuna will ever accept his continued presence in Nyowani Kitara, and Nephara and Eura will be happy to acquiesce if they get everything else they want. I assume you were planning on taking care of him?"

"If need be, yes. We have plans to provide a...stipend, and a residence, for him to stay. He will not be happy at first, but he will grow comfortable here with time."

"Well, I was speaking with my colleagues, and we were hoping that Malik could stay in Yuezhou after his...departure."

The Kabaka's eyes opened in mild surprise. "You wish to take care of Malik? You are...aware of his reputation, yes? He is not cheap."

"There are plenty of party boys in the South after the Liberation. But yes, we can match what amount you are giving him, and provide a home in Nangang."

"Before we explain this to him, I must ask...why do you want to do this? A show of strength, before your elections?"

"Ren Qiang hid with Nafuna, didn't he? We're just returning the favor."

"Understood. Well, give my best wishes to your President Wu. I'll have my delegation bring Malik in - but let me take the lead here. He may not be understanding immediately."

As if on cue, the door opened, and Malik Akongo walked in flanked by Banijan diplomats. "Your Highness," he said, and then, as if an afterthought, "Minister Zhen."

"Malik. Minister Zhen and I have been speaking, and given our current position in negotiations, we believe that it's best that you take up a residency in Yuezhou. Minister Zhen has communicated that the United Republics are willing to pay you a significant stipend and provide you with housing in Nangang."

Malik narrowed his eyes. "Who says I'm leaving?"

"Concessions will have to be made, Malik, if we want to get your sister in the weakest possible position moving forwards. Given the hardline stance that's being taken by the other side, we can't guarantee your safety if you don't leave the country."

"Well, what am I supposed to do in Yuezhou? No offense," he mentioned in passing, "but I'm not going to just sit on the ocean and watch them defile what we built. What do they even want me for?" Zhen Qiang glanced towards the Kabaka, who nodded, and began to respond.

"It's nice to meet you, Malik," he began tepidly, then reconsidered. "If you stay in your country, you will die. Nafuna will kill you, and then they'll do whatever they were planning on doing anyway. So you must leave. But staying in Rushmore gives you the best chance of being able to influence Nyowani Kitara's development - the elections, the referendum. And you will be comfortable in Nangang."

"And what are you getting out of this?"

Zhen smiled. "Your interests are our interests. We would both like the eradication of socialism from Pavola. This gives us the best chance of that. The Kabaka offered to take you in as well, but we believe you can do the most damage while still local. Imagine jetting around Rushmore, raising support for free governments, building up a diplomatic power base to lock Nafuna in."

"Why Yuezhou, then?"

"Because we will take you in. Besides, you'll like it in Nangang. We're a freed city now. Would you rather party here or freeze to death in Háttmark? Because you don't have a whole lot of choices here."

Malik sized up the Foreign Minister and the Kabaka in turn. "Fine."

"Welcome to Yuezhou."

MD4: Gatchingerrak Union 2–4 Yuezhou
Lineup: Lu; Jiawei (Kang 80), Yuan, Zhu, Reeve (Li JG 60); Wen, Wan, Li (C); Luo (Jiang 54), Liu, Huang
Goals: Reeve 12, Huang 35, Liu 45+1, Jiang 67

MD5: Yuezhou 3-4 Zwangzug
Lineup: Lu; Jiawei, Li JG, Yuan (Reeve 65), Zhu; Wen, Wan, Li (C) (Tao 56); Luo, Liu (Zheng 80), Huang
Goals: Luo 34, Huang 66, Zheng 83

Lineup to face South Newlandia (MD6): Lu; Jiawei, Li JG, Yuan, Zhu; Wen, Wan, Li (C); Luo, Liu, Huang
Lineup to face Lisander (MD7): Lu; Jiawei, Li JG, Yuan, Reeve; Wen, Wan, Tao; Luo, Liu, Huang

[Squidroidia]

Upon Adam Johnson's arrival in the media center at Inkopolis City Stadium for the post-match press conference, the Barunian was met by perhaps as many snaps as he had heard since the World Cup 89 run, a mob of media members focused on him and him only as he made it to his seat and faced the media head on. It was a precarious situation, a knife's edge situation after a 1-1 draw with Legalese of all teams, and he expected a draw against Savojarna or especially Indie rivals Kohnhead. But ahead of both St Trinians and the rivalry game with the Brains, he had to endure cross-examination by the media.

First up, Inkling correspondent and spreadsheet worker for SBN Ferdi Lowe. "Given the circumstances of this 1-1 draw, I know Brooks had her goal and all and you were very proud of her, but how would you describe losing to Legalese?"

"I did not expect losing to Legalese. A team who has been playing together for 67-odd cycles, at least that's what the sheets say, but pulling off a maneuver to have a bunch of kids playing as kids for roughly 130 years, way before I was born, that seems impressive, not fishy as others would probably say to me. A team with that experience gets stuff done fairly quickly."

An editor for the Inkopolis Times stepped up next. "Adam, denying Legalese's 67 cycle old roster, with players still 16 even after all that time seems fishy in of itself. Do you assume that they have time traveled up to the World Cup 90 qualifiers?"

"I won't confirm nor deny it. I know some nations who have used time travel, teams use multiverse portals all the time, but whoever is putting up the Legalese roster has been doing some more advanced techniques as far as I know. One does not simply have a World Cup 23 roster lying around and put it up for World Cup 90 WITH the players showing up. Unless your name is Legalese."

"So you're assuming that they have used some sort of cryogenic sleep for 130 plus years?"

"I cannot confirm nor deny it."

By now Johnson was eying up some suspicion from the media, and Lowe came in again. "So you don't know what's up with the Legalese team?"

"Hell if I know! Their roster says World Cup 23 on it but this is World Cup 90! I don't know why it's like this, THEIR NAME IS LEGALESE! They're pulling legalese on all of us and I don't know why or how or even what they are doing with this! Okay? Will this make you shut up about Legalese?"

"On the whole 16 year old plays for 130 years as a 16 year old thing, yes. How did you rate your team today, Johnson?"

"Certainly the worst this team was SINCE that godawful Moliza game. I mean we went on a run to the World Cup quarters during that stretch but yes. Worst team I have seen not counting the Under 18s that my assistant sent to the IAC. Except for that Brooks goal, they showed nothing. We deserved a point at best, and we got 2nd and 3rd coming up."

"Any chances on the St Trinians game, Johnson?" The Inkopolis News editor replied.

"They're a good team, very good team for a team in their 2nd ever World Cup qualifier cycle, they look deadly and they might stun us, but if anything, even just getting 1 point out of that will hurt our chances at making the World Cup. I want 3 points at St. Trinians and 3 points at Kohnhead most likely, but this team needs to improve after that draw today."

Then came Lowe with the bomb. "And what about that mysterious Hapilopper email chain that most everybody has been talking about?"

Johnson gave an eyeroll before he spoke on the matter. "I had read the email for the team just so they were alerted to it. I have seen the Milchama based reply to it, I think everyone on the team got it, but nobody's complaining to me about it. Seems like some accidental fun, although I think others outside our team may not like it. As long as no threats are made to our team, then it would be personal."

Barring another email, this would be the end of it when it came to discussing the emails made by one Nathan Ellis, as the press conference came to an end. 9 games down and 3 points ahead of 2nd and 3rd. Things could certainly go wrong.

[Eraman]

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Day 4 - Month 9 - Year 8

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SPORTS

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Eraman is proud to give fierce competition to The Holy Empire

Daulapura: The Prime Minister of Eraman, Tun Rendra Usin congratulated the Eraman national team for giving fierce competition to The Holy Empire in the 4th match of Group 18 of the 90th World Cup qualifier at the Daulapura Stadium yesterday.

He is proud of the action shown by the players despite just earning a point after a 2-2 draw with The Holy Empire.

“The Holy Empire is the toughest opponent you can get and we have to admit its greatness. Although Eraman is a poor country, but when it competes with richer countries, the rich country does not win. That's the fighting spirit we want to see from every Eramanians,” he said at a press conference this morning.

In the match, The Holy Empire had to wait until the 38th minute to break the deadlock when Nebula Fadington calmly fired a powerful shot from inside the box after taking advantage of a teammate's cross pass. The striker then squandered the opportunity to add another personal goal in the 43rd minute, but his shot went straight into the arms of Eraman goalkeeper, Mikla Kala.

The Holy Empire added their second 10 minutes into the second half as Shadow Whitmore make a name for himself as a scorer with a powerful long shot from outside the box. The Holy Empire captain continued to be a thorn in the flesh for the home side when he almost scored The Holy Empire's third goal in the match, but a shot from outside the penalty box was successfully deflected out by Eraman goalkeeper, Mikla Kala.

Eraman striker, Putra Daulapura Wikra Petara brought joy to the home side when he scored a goal in the 76th minute to close the gap to 1-2. And when the visitors thought they will return home with a routine 3 points, Eraman substitute, Sagari Krita managed to score an equalizer in the 88th minute thus tying the result 2-2 until the final whistle.

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Day 7 - Month 9 - Year 8

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SPORTS

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3 valuable points from Woodstock, but Mytanija next

Woodstock: The 1-0 victory over Sarzonia yesterday was described as a valuable victory for Eraman.

The national team head coach, Ross Hearkener said, the slim away win is a big result in their mission to qualify for the World Cup.

“It is not easy playing Sarzonia in their home turf. They are lined up with experienced players. We were desperate for the win and the players gave their all," he said in a press conference after the match.

However, he reminded the players to keep focus and not to be complacent as they prepare to host Mytanija in the next match.

"We have Mytanija at home next, another tough fixture. Both sides have not lost in their last 3 matches, avoiding defeat at the hands of The Holy Empire. The match will demand the players to be at their best for the whole duration of the match," he explained.